Apr 25th, 2020

Apr 25th, 2020

Controversial Chinese swimmer Sun Yang could have his suspension doubled with world anti-doping officials investigating an apparent breach of his current ban.

Sun is currently serving an eight-year suspension after the Court of Arbitration for Sport found him guilty of tampering with the doping control process.

The 28-year-old is in danger of seeing his ban doubled to 16 years, after reports emerged that he had joined the Chinese national team for a three-month training camp.

One of the most basic rules of serving a doping ban is that along with being unable to compete, the athlete is also not allowed to train with their national teams through the duration of the suspension.

Under the World Anti-Doping Agency's (WADA) strict code, Sun training with the Chinese national team would mean an instant doubling of the existing penalty, something that would surely end his career.

The Chinese Swimming Association (CSA) quickly retracted its invitation to Sun, but that hasn't stopped WADA launching an investigation into exactly what is taking place in China.

The CSA was forced into quickly retracting it's invitation to the banned Sun Yang (AAP)

"Based on the WADA Code, Sun Yang has been banned from competition after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) made the decision. That won't change during Sun Yang's appeal to the Swiss Federal Tribunal against the CAS decision. The previous No.49 document is therefore invalid," the CSA said in a statement.

"When an athlete has been declared ineligible, the terms of Article 10.12.1 of the World Anti-Doping Code apply. We are following up with the relevant authorities to establish the facts in this matter," WADA told The Sunday Telegraph.