D-day for Sun Yang. The Chinese swimmer, triple Olympic champion, will be heard this Tuesday, May 25th, by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The hearing will take place by videoconference. It should last three days. The sporting future of the Chinese is at stake. He was suspended for eight years by the CAS in February 2020 for having tried to destroy a vial of his blood with a hammer, during an unannounced doping control at his home in 2018, but put back in the race last December by the Swiss Court. Against all odds, the court had overturned the CAS decision, finding that the chairman of the arbitration panel, former Italian diplomatic chief Franco Frattini, had not been partial. The Court of Arbitration for Sport has not announced when it will make its decision, but it is expected to be made before the Tokyo Games. In case of a favorable verdict, Sun Yang could participate in the Olympic events. The Chinese Swimming Federation has decided that the world champions in 2019 would automatically qualify for the Tokyo Games. Sun Yang holds the men’s 200 and 400m world titles.
