German swimmers have reacted with anger and incomprehension to reports of allegedly unpunished doping cases in Chinese swimming.
“Of course it shocks you,” said freestyle expert Josha Salchow at a press conference on the occasion of the upcoming German championships in Berlin. The national record holder over 100 meters added: “Of course this is all really shit for the sport, to put it in plain English. There’s no question about it – especially since it’s not the first time that there have been such allegations or allegations from China.”
According to research by the ARD doping editorial team and the “New York Times” as well as a report by the Australian newspaper “Daily Telegraph”, 23 top swimmers tested positive for the heart drug trimetazidine at a national competition in China at the beginning of 2021. The World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) said it had closed the investigation on the grounds that, after a “review process lasting several weeks”, the athletes could not be blamed for any fault or negligence. According to the Chinese anti-doping agency Chinada, the positive doping tests were due to contamination in a hotel kitchen.
“This is of course an absolute breach of trust. I find it completely incomprehensible why no action was taken,” said Melvin Imoudu, who holds the German record for the 50 meter breaststroke. “We’re always told: Be careful what you take in. Be careful what you eat. Always make sure there’s nothing in there – because even if you’re not to blame for what’s in there, you will blocked and investigations are being carried out and it is simply left under the table.” Imoudu also said: “As long as there is no clarification, these athletes should first be banned, as harsh as that sounds.”
