Team GB’s Adam Peaty has launched scathing remarks at Paris Olympics officials, making shocking claims regarding ‘cheating’ athletes.
British swimmer Adam Peaty seems to have cast doubt on China’s victory in the men’s 4×100 meter medley relay and openly discussed his potential return to the Olympics.
Qin Haiyang and Sun Jiajun, two members of the gold medal-winning team, were among 23 Chinese swimmers who tested positive for the banned substance trimetazidine before the Tokyo Olympics, according to an investigation by the New York Times.
The swimmers were allowed to compete under the belief that they had unknowingly ingested the drug through contaminated food.
Peaty, who competed with his teammates Oliver Morgan, Duncan Scott, and Matt Richards, finished fourth, missing out on a podium spot.
He has emphasized that his frustration with the event isn’t due to bitterness over the result and also seemed to reference allegations that Qin tested positive for another performance-enhancing drug in 2017, again blamed on food contamination.
He urged Olympic officials to ensure that no cheating occurs in the competition.
Peaty stated: “If you touch and you know that you’re cheating, you’re not winning. For me, if you’ve been on that and you have been ‘contaminated’ twice, I think as an honorable person you should be out of the sport.”
The British swimmer did not confirm whether Paris would be his last Olympics and mentioned he would take a break from the sport afterward.
However, he did assert that the GB team would use these Olympics as motivation for the next one.
He added: “We’ll use it to our advantage for the next four years, whether I’m there or not.
“I know these boys will carry that and we’ll see how they do in four years’ time.”
He concluded by urging officials: “But I think to the people that need to do their job – wake up and do your job. I think we have to have faith in the system. But we also don’t. I think it’s got to be stricter.”
In response, Qin appeared to counter Peaty’s comments in an Instagram post.
He posted a picture of the 4x100m relay team with the caption: “We did it! Olympic champion! Any doubt is just a joke. Stress will only make us stronger.”