CHINADA – on Knighton doping case: “USADA’s rhetoric about fairness and clean sport contradicts its actual practice”

The actions of the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) regarding the positive doping test of track and field athlete Errion Knighton show that the agency’s rhetoric about clean sport is not borne out in practice, according to a statement published on the website of the China Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). -Doping Agency (CHINADA).

Errion Knighton tested positive for a trenbolone metabolite on March 26. The athlete was temporarily suspended from competition on April 12. During hearings, which took place on June 14 and 16, the athlete was able to prove the accidental entry of a banned drug into his body, thus obtaining the right to compete at the 2024 Olympic Games in France.

— Surprisingly, the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) suddenly ruled, before the start of the national qualifying competition for the Paris Olympics, that Knighton would not be disqualified, claiming that Knighton’s positive test for trenbolone was due to his consumption of contaminated meat, and allowing him to eventually represent the United States at the Paris Olympics.

Knighton’s case shows that USADA’s rhetoric about fairness and clean sport is at odds with its actual practices. This contradiction is further glaring in the fact that major professional leagues and the NCAA have their own anti-doping standards that clearly conflict with the World Anti-Doping Code, CHINADA said in a press release.

China’s anti-doping agency called on USADA to “stop fabricating false stories, politicizing anti-doping and manipulating public opinion.” CHINADA also demanded that the U.S. organization abandon double standards when USADA acquits American athletes while demanding sanctions against Chinese swimmers.

In April, the New York Times reported that trimetazidine had been found in samples taken from 23 Chinese swimmers ahead of the Tokyo Olympics. According to the publication, the Chinese Anti-Doping Agency (CHINADA) conducted its own investigation, after which it announced that the substance had unintentionally and in small amounts entered the athletes’ bodies. A joint investigation by the organization and Chinese police revealed that traces of the substance had been found in the kitchen of the hotel where the Chinese swimmers were staying. WADA was unable to refute the Chinese version and did not punish the athletes. Independent prosecutor Eric Cottier found no error on WADA’s part in the Chinese swimmers’ case.

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