Sun Yang Takes U-Turn on U-Turn, Will Race in FINA Champions Series Says Fan Club

Sun Yang will race in Shenzhen at the FINA Champions Swim Series despite conflicting reports that he pulled out of the meet. Photo Courtesy: Becca Wyant

The Sun Yang Fan Club in China has announced on social media that the swimmer has had yet another change of heart and will now race the 200m and 400m freestyle at the FINA Champions invitational event in Shenzhen on January 14 and 15. There is no official confirmation of the fan club message on Weibo after FINA announced Sun as part of the show this week only for Sun to say he would not be racing, his focus on Tokyo 2020.

Sun was spotted in the Shenzhen airport today on January 11.

Updated: Sun Yang arrived in Shenzhen earlier today (Jan 11th). pic.twitter.com/zOXSbDJjTx

— Chinese Swimming News and Results (@fan_swimming) January 11, 2020

A decision on Sun’s future is due anytime now from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) after a hearing last November into controversial events surrounding a visit from out-of-competition anti-doping testers in September 2018.

This means that Sun Yang will be racing Danas Rapsys in the 200 and 400 freestyle in China on January 14 and 15 in Shenzhen, China in one of the matchups of the meet. Rapsys touched first in the 200 free final at World Championships this year ahead of Sun, but the former was disqualified for a false start, thus elevating Sun to the gold medal. Rapsys also finished fourth in the 400 free while Sun won his fourth straight World title in the event.

Danas Rapsys has been on fire since the World Championships, swimming the fastest time in the world in the 200 free at the World Cup three weeks after Worlds, and also nearly broke the 400 free SCM world record at the European Short Course Championships in December. He poses a serious threat to Sun Yang in both the 200 and 400 free not only this week in China, but also at the Olympic Games if Sun is permitted to compete.

12 Chinese swimmers, in addition to Sun Yang, will be racing at the FINA Champions Series this week including Worlds medalists Wang Shun, Xu Jiayu, Yan Zibei, Wang Jianjiahe and Ye Shiwen.

Here are the full list of athletes attending the FINA Champions Swim Series:

Men:

Michael Andrew, USA, 50 free, 50 back, 50, 100 fly, 200 IM
Dmitriy Balandin, KAZ, 100, 200 breast
Marcelo Chierighini, BRA, 100 free
Apostolos Christou, GRE, 50 back
Anthony Ervin, USA, 50 free
Kristian Gkolomeev, GRE, 50 free
Robert Glinta, ROU, 50 back
Joao Gomes, BRA, 50 breast
Andriy Govorov, UKR, 50 fly
Matt Grevers, USA, 100 back
Zach Harting, USA, 200 fly
Ji Xinjie, CHN, 400 free
Arno Kamminga, NED, 50, 100, 200 breast
Radoslaw Kawecki, POL, 200 back
Tamas Kenderesi, HUN, 200 fly
Denys Kesyl, UKR, 200 fly
Marco Koch, GER, 200 breast
Oleg Kostin, RUS, 50, 100 fly
Dominik Kozma, HUN, 200, 400 free
Andrei Minakov, RUS, 100 free, 100 fly
Vladimir Morozov, RUS, 50, 100 free
Jacob Pebley, USA, 100, 200 back, 200 IM
Josh Prenot, USA, 200 breast, 200 IM
Danas Rapsys, LTU, 200, 400 free
Masato Sakai, JPN, 200 fly
Nicholas Santos, BRA, 50 fly
Fabio Scozzoli, ITA, 50 breast
Ilya Shymanovich, BLR, 50, 100 breast
Sun Yang, CHN, 200, 400 free
Adam Telegdy, HUN, 200 back
Matthew Temple, AUS, 100 fly
Markus Thormeyer, CAN, 200 free, 100, 200 back
Pieter Timmers, BEL, 100 free
Wang Shun, CHN, 200 IM
Xu Jiayu, CHN, 50, 100 back
Yan Zibei, CHN, 100 breast

Women:

Alia Atkinson, JAM, 50, 100 breast
Martina Carraro, ITA, 50, 100, 200 breast
Svetlana Chimrova, RUS, 200 fly
Michelle Coleman, SWE, 50, 100 free, 50, 100 back, 50 fly
Elena Di Liddo, ITA, 50, 100 fly
Anna Egorova, RUS, 400 free
Fu Yuanhui, CHN, 100 back
Molly Hannis, USA, 50 breast
Siobhan Haughey, HKG, 100, 200 free
Femke Heemskerk, NED, 50, 100, 200 free
Katinka Hosszu, HUN, 200 free, 100, 200 back, 100, 200 fly, 200 IM
Ida Hulkko, FIN, 50 breast
Boglarka Kapas, HUN, 400 free, 200 fly
Ajna Kesely, HUN, 400 free
Ranomi Kromowidjojo, NED, 50, 100 free, 50, 100 fly
Liu Xiang, CHN, 50 free, 50 back
Liu Yaxin, CHN, 200 back
Jeanette Ottesen, DEN, 50, 100 fly
Sydney Pickrem, CAN, 200 back, 100, 200 breast, 200 IM
Caroline Pilhatsch, AUT, 50 back
Liliana Szilagyi, HUN, 200 fly
Kira Toussaint, NED, 50, 100, 200 back
Wang Jianjiahe, CHN, 400 free
Yang Junxuan, CHN, 200 free
Ye Shiwen, CHN, 200 breast, 200 IM
Yu Jingyao, CHN, 100, 200 breast
Yu Yiting, CHN, 200 IM

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