Sun Yang Wins 400 Freestyle In Return to Competition, Doesn't Rule Out LA 2028 (original) (raw)
Sun Yang is back in competition and wasted no time returning to his winning ways.
The 32-year-old Sun won the 400 freestyle at China’s National Summer Swimming Championships in his first meet since serving a four-year and three-month doping suspension. Sun’s suspension—originally set for eight years before being reduced—ended in May.
It was an emotional day at the Sumer Championships for Sun, who broke down in tears during an interview after winning his prelims heat in 3:54.98 and qualifying for the final in second. “[Getting back to this point] really is because of the reliance and support from my family,” Sun said after his heats swim, per the South China Morning Post.
When asked what it was like to be back racing, he said to CGTN Sports Scene “It was a very familiar feeling. I felt nervous and I bit anxious. It had really been a long time, and this was my first race. I hadn’t had this feeling for a very long time, and I needed to feel it again.”
Clip of Sun’s 400 free prelim swim
🇨🇳China’s Sun Yang made his comeback at the 2024 National Summer #Swimming Championships on Sunday.
🏊♂️Representing the Zhejiang team, the three-time Olympic champion finished 2nd in the men’s 400m freestyle preliminaries with a time of ⏱️3:54.98 and reached the final. pic.twitter.com/jD86onxDKC
— CGTN Sports Scene (@CGTNSportsScene) August 25, 2024
Courtesy CGTN Sports Scene
Sun went on to win the final in 3:49.58, ahead of Xu Haibo (3:50.14) and Xu Yizhou (3:51.31).
“I could have done better,” Sun told the Shanghai Daily after the final. “Four years away from competition, and without intensive training, I do feel rusty in controlling the tempo, and I need more competitions. But it’s a good start for my comeback, and I’m happy with this result.”
Sun was allowed to train during his suspension, but he was barred from doing so at a government-funded training facility, with a professional team, or any other Chinese-sponsored athletes. In December 2021, he was under investigation for training at a government-funded facility, though his ban was not restarted. In February, SwimSwam reported that Sun was training daily and remained registered in China’s drug-testing pool.
After prelims when he was asked if he would try to qualify for the 2028 Olympics, Sun responded “If there’s an opportunity, I will go all out to get it.”
You can review the timeline of how the three-time Olympic champion’s doping suspension unfolded below. A full recap of the 2024 National Summer Swimming Championships is forthcoming.
Sun Yang‘s Suspension Timeline
- September 2018: Sun challenges authorization of doping control agents during test, ending with a vial of his blood being smashed
- January 2019: an independent anti-doping panel rules in Sun’s favor, leading FINA (the international governing body for swimming) to not issue a sanction against Sun
- March 2019: WADA (the World Anti-Doping Agency) appeals that decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport
- November 2019: CAS hears the case in a fully-public hearing marred by translation issues. The full 11-hour hearing is live-streamed online.
- February 2020: The three-person CAS panel rules against Sun, banning him for eight years.
- July 2020: Sun files two appeals with the Swiss Federal Tribunal, hoping to either have his ban overturned or revised.
- December 2020: The Swiss Federal Tribunal overturns the ban, sending the case back to CAS for a second hearing. The decision centers around the first panel’s president, who tweeted racist comments about China on social media.
- May 2021: Yang does not compete at the Chinese National Championships, amid uncertainty of the outcome of his CAS retrial.
- June 2021: CAS retrial results in ruling to reduce Yang’s ban to 4 years and 3 months
- December 2021: Sun Yang Under Investigation for Training at Government-Funded Facilities
- February 2024: Sun Yang Not Giving Up On Paris 2024
- May 2024: Sun Yang Eyes Return To Competition as Doping Suspension Ends
- August 2024: Sun Yang Reportedly Returning To Racing At China’s Summer National Championships
In This Story
Sun Yang
About Sophie Kaufman
Sophie grew up in Boston, Massachusetts, which means yes, she does root for the Bruins, but try not to hold that against her. At 9, she joined her local club team because her best friend convinced her it would be fun. Shoulder surgery ended her competitive swimming days long ago, …