Swimming’s world governing body has cleared Chinese Olympic champion Sun Yang of any wrongdoing following complaints over his behavior at this month’s world championships in Russia.
FINA executive director Cornel Marculescu told Reuters the altercation that led to a complaint against Sun was the result of overcongestion in the warmup pool in Kazan and did not warrant further action.
“There was a misunderstanding in the pool,” Marculescu said.
“In Kazan, we have over 1,000 swimmers, so the preparation pool became very crowded.”
The Brazilian Aquatic Sports Federation said it made a formal complaint to FINA about Sun following a confrontation with a Brazilian female competitor during a warm-up session on the last day of the championships.
A Brazilian coach said Sun had tried to kick and elbow Larissa Oliveira after they collided with each other in the warmup pool.
Sun later withdrew from the final of the 1500 meters freestyle, an event he won at the previous world championships and at the London Olympics – and in which he holds the world record – citing a heart problem.
Sun apologized for pulling out of the race but neither he nor the Chinese Swimming Federation commented on the warmup pool incident.
He was later named as the best male swimmer in Kazan after winning the 400 meters and 800 meters.
NOTHING SPECIAL
“This is not, for me, anything special,” Marculescu said.
“(In the future) we need two preparation pools because one is not enough.”
Sun’s shock withdrawal from the 1500 meters caught most people by surprise, including FINA officials, who spoke to Sun before the race was due to start.
“We discussed it with the (Chinese) delegation and the federation and finally with him and he said it was some health problem,” Marculescu said.
“His coach was also debating with him, a little bit stronger, to make him swim but he said he can’t.
“He’s a great star, he’s a great swimmer. But with the young people, you never know.”
Read Reuters
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