Also the Association of Athletes Germany demands After Angelina Köhler narrowly missed the Olympic medal, Complete clarification of the unpunished doping cases in Chinese swimming“WADA must finally undertake a complete investigation of the suspected cases and publish the investigation reports to date. This could also counteract the massive loss of trust and credibility that WADA's actions in dealing with the suspected cases bring with them,” said member Kevin Götz, clearly criticizing the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
Butterfly swimmer Köhler finished fourth in the 100 meters on Saturday, just one place behind bronze medalist Zhang Yufei. The name of the 26-year-old Chinese swimmer is on a list published by ARD of 23 swimmers who tested positive for the heart drug trimetazidine at a national competition in China in early 2021 but were not banned. The core of the research is an unpublished investigation report by the Chinese anti-doping agency Chinada – verified by several sources, according to ARD.
World champion Köhler, who was in tears after her race, also demanded clarification on the matter. “She has the medal now, and she deserves it. The presumption of innocence applies. But it has a bitter aftertaste and I hope that something else will come of it,” said the 23-year-old.
Zhang Yufei herself recently expressed the hope that her international competitors would believe in her innocence. “I don't think there is a single athlete, either from China or abroad, who would test positive for doping,” she said. “They wouldn't want to destroy all the hard work they have done over the years in terms of doping.” She reported that she and her teammates had been tested three to four times a week in recent months.
Chinada attributed the positive tests to contamination in a hotel kitchen, and Wada followed this assessment. This caused incomprehension among many athletes and officials – even though an independent investigator from Switzerland later found no wrongdoing on the part of Wada. (dpa)