Extraordinary new twist as Chinese fans turn on Sun Yang

Australian swimmer Mack Horton has been inundated with apologies from China after an explosive report revealed why Sun Yang was handed such a severe ban.

Sun, a multiple world and Olympic champion, was banned by CAS for eight years last Friday for missing an out-of-competition test in 2018 in which a member of his entourage smashed a vial of the swimmer’s blood.

Since then, Sun’s ‘striking’ lack of remorse and ‘blatant intimidatory tactics’ were revealed in an explosive 78-page report from the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

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On Thursday, CAS published their full report into the Sun case and exposed some troubling new information in the process.

In explaining why Sun was hit with the heaviest punishment available, CAS delivered a brutal assessment of the Chinese swimmer’s actions.

“The actions of the Athlete were wholly inappropriate,” the report reads.

“There was no justification, whether compelling or otherwise, for him to act as he did.”

Mack Horton was originally targeted last year on social media from Chinese swimming fans after he refused to share the podium with Sun at the world championships when he came in behind the controversial swimmer.

But in a twist, fans have come out and apologised to Horton following Sun’s extraordinary doping offence.

Weibo, a Chinese social media site, has seen users offer their apologies to Horton.

Chinese fans have also taken to Horton’s Instagram and apologised directly to him.

“Mr. Horton, I am sorry that I have wronged you,” one person wrote on Horton’s post.

“A lot of people are starting to support you on Weibo.”

Another comment read: “Sorry for all the undeserved hatred from China before.”

“You will be welcomed by Chinese people if you visit China some day. Sun Yang lied to the whole country and we just realised how we were fooled before.”

Many comments showed Chinese swimming fans turning on Sun following the ban.

Sun should come clean

Disgraced Chinese swimmer Sun should come clean about the extent of his doping violations, according to a leading US anti-doping official.

USADA chief executive Travis Tygart, the man who helped expose Lance Armstrong, says Sun's best chance to reduce his eight-year doping ban is to shed light on the whole saga.

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Despite his ban, CAS were unable to strip him of his medals from the world championships because he was technically ‘clean’ at the time of the event.

Sun was controversially cleared by FINA to take part at the event in 2019 despite having read a report that he smashed vials of his own blood during a doping test in 2018.

The Chinese star has vowed to appeal the CAS decision, which he considers to be an illegitimate ban from the sport.

However, Tygart says Sun's best course of action is to expose anyone who aided and abetted his doping offences.

With Agencies