00:00He screamed at the bronze medalist on the podium, and as they walked away, he couldn't help but continue rubbing
00:05it in his face.
00:08Sun Yang was one of the greatest swimmers in the world, but here he was at the World Championships, arrogantly
00:15gloating and berating the other swimmers he'd beaten.
00:18But why?
00:19Well, for Sun, it had been feeling like the walls of his sport were closing in on him ever since
00:242014.
00:24And he didn't know it yet, but in 2020, it was about to get much worse.
00:30See, in 2014, Sun had received a three-month doping ban for using trimetazidine, a prescription heart medication typically used
00:38by patients with poor blood flow to the heart.
00:41But for someone with a healthy heart, the medication can help the heart function more efficiently under extreme physical stress,
00:47increasing endurance.
00:49Sun claimed the medicine was prescribed to him for health reasons, and that he had no idea the substance had
00:55been prohibited.
00:56But four years later, when an out-of-competition drug testing team surprised Sun at his house for an unannounced
01:02test, Sun's reaction seemed quite suspicious.
01:06At first, Sun allowed the officials to collect the blood samples. He had to if he wanted to keep competing.
01:11But when they tried to leave with the samples, Sun's doctor prevented the officials from leaving.
01:17He accused the collectors of not having the right credentials or paperwork, and he instructed Sun's bodyguard to smash the
01:24case that Sun's blood was being stored in.
01:26The World Anti-Doping Agency was furious, but due to the timing and the fact the International Swimming Federation initially
01:33accepted the doctor's concerns about credentials, Sun Yang was allowed to compete at the 2019 World Championships.
01:40So when he went on to win gold in his events, the other swimmers weren't impressed.
01:45Australian swimmer Mack Horton, who won silver in the 400m freestyle against Sun, refused to step on the podium or
01:52shake Sun's hand during the medal ceremony.
01:55Then, two days later, when British swimmer Duncan Scott won bronze behind Sun's gold in the 200m freestyle, he too
02:02protested the win.
02:03It infuriated Sun Yang. He lashed out at Duncan, rubbing the win in his face.
02:08But the following year, in 2020, Sun's actions eventually caught up with him.
02:13He was found guilty of tampering with the doping control process, and he was given an eight-year ban, eventually
02:19reduced to four years after an appeal.
02:21With the 2020 Olympics being delayed, the ban locked him out of two Olympic Games and essentially ended his career.
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