Chinese swimmer Sun, facing lengthy ban, rejects dope test charge

Chinese swimming star Sun Yang, facing a ban of up to eight years for missing an out-of-competition test, told the Court of Arbitration for Sport on Friday that testers were at fault by failing to identify themselves correctly.

Attending a one-day CAS public hearing in person in a bid to clear his name, Sun, accused of using a hammer to smash a vial containing his own blood sample, maintained his innocence and said testers were unprofessional and ignored protocol.

"If they had been professional and had shown their identification, we would not be here today," Sun said in Chinese, translated court interpreters.

"The officials were not even capable of proving their identity. How could I allow them to take my sample," said the triple Olympic champion who is a national hero in China.

Sun insisted that documents provided by the testers were invalid.

"If a policeman came to your house in the middle of the night and says, 'I'm a policeman, but I don't have any identification,' how would you behave?" Sun said.

Sun, winner of 11 world titles, was cleared of wrongdoing in January by FINA, the international swimming federation.

The body confirmed that he had used a hammer to smash a vial containing his own blood sample during the testing session in September last year but agreed that testers had failed to produce adequate identification or follow correct protocol.

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