Why do FINA protect cheats?

IT sAys everything about FINA, swimming’s governing body, that they have been forced to hurriedly draft a new code of conduct in the middle of the World Aquatic Championships to stop athletes denouncing drug cheats.

If FINA were doing their job properly, athletes would not need to take the initiative. If FINA had their priorities right, the only conduct causing concern would be that of Chinese swimmer sun yang.

Visited by dope-testers, sun (above) refused to provide a urine sample and then smashed vials of his own blood with a hammer and the help of China’s team doctor. FINA went soft on punishment, so now the case is going before the Court of Arbitration in september.

If he is found guilty, he will receive a life ban, having already served one ban for use of trimetazidine. yet, here he is in south Korea, winning gold and brazenly calling his rivals ‘losers’ for daring to speak out.

And FINA’s response is to sanction the protesters. Mack Horton, the Australian who led the way by refusing to shake sun’s hand or join him on the podium, having finished second in the 400m freestyle, was said to have behaved in an ‘unacceptable’ manner by FINA.

Their latest edict demands swimmers ‘strictly avoid any offensive or improper behaviour towards the officials, the other competitors, the team members or spectators during the competition’.

Their faux-concern fools nobody. What FINA are really against is athletes embarrassing them by denouncing cheats winning on their watch. Adam Peaty immediately dismissed the code of conduct and promised to continue speaking out. ‘When we detect something is wrong and there is cheating, why shouldn’t we have a voice?’ he said.

It would be ironic in the extreme if clean athletes were disciplined, while sun continued to thrive. It would also be very FINA.