Translation issues delay verdict in Sun Yang doping case
LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) — Translation problems in the doping case of Olympic swimming champion Sun Yang have delayed the expected verdict to January, the Court of Arbitration for Sport said Tuesday.
CAS said an “agreed-upon written transcript” from the hearing, including Sun’s testimony from Chinese into English, is being prepared to help the judging panel who heard the appeal in open court last month.
“In view of these circumstances, the (verdict) is not expected to be issued before mid-January,” the court said.
Sun is facing a ban from next year's Tokyo Olympics if the three-judge panel decides he broke anti-doping rules by refusing to cooperate with officials who visited his home in China in September 2018. He disputed their credentials to take his blood and urine samples.
The World Anti-Doping Agency appealed against a ruling by swimming governing body FINA to simply warn Sun over the confrontational incident.
Lawyers and the three judges often had difficulty following proceedings, including cross-examination of Sun early in the 10-hour hearing.
CAS rules allow parties to provide their own translators, but those brought by the three-time Olympic gold medalist’s team were replaced during the lunch break by a WADA staff member.
WADA asked the court to ban Sun for between two and eight years. It would be a second violation for Sun, who served a three-month ban imposed by Chinese authorities in 2014 after testing positive for a banned stimulant.
