(This is the first in a series of articles about renewed concerns regarding systematic doping by Chinese swimmers.)<\/i><\/p>\n
By Phillip Whitten<\/p>\n
PHOENIX, January 7. FOR the past several weeks, we at swiminfo<\/b> and Swimming World<\/b><\/i> have been gathering the results of the Chinese national championships, which took place in Guangzhou in November. <\/p>\n
Though the Chinese swimming authorities have not yet published the full results of this meet, we have managed to piece together most of the top times from a variety of sources. The pattern that emerges is a very disturbing one.<\/p>\n
Several weeks ago, I wrote an editorial based on partial results from the Chinese nationals. That editorial appears in the January issue of Swimming World<\/i>, which is out today. The more complete results make an ever stronger case than the partial results on which I based my editorial.<\/p>\n
The pattern that emerged in Guangzhou is one that is remarkably similar to the East German pattern of the 1970s and '80s, and the Chinese pattern to which we first called attention in 1993 and '94, and which ultimately led to FINA, reluctantly, taking a much stronger position against doping. As a consequence, beginning late in 1994, Chinese swimmers tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs in record numbers. In 1998, just before the World Championships in Perth, a Chinese swimmer, Yuan Yuan, was caught at Sydney Airport with enough vials of human growth hormone to supply the entire Chinese team. Yuan and her coach were later suspended.<\/p>\n
In November, Chinese women swimmers — but not men — leaped to the top of the world rankings. Some of those doing the leaping were swimmers never before ranked in the world's top 200. Newcomer Zhang Liang, 17, for instance, jumped to the #1 spot in the world in 2001 for the 200m free (1:58.11) and 400 free (4:06.97), and #2 in the 800 (8:26.48). The last person to go from 4:20+ to 4:07 was Ireland's Michelle Smith.<\/p>\n
Another newcomer, Pang Jiang swam the second fastest 400 in the world (4:07.12), to go with her 1:59.01 200 free (7th in the world). <\/p>\n
Fifteen year-old Yang Yu sped to two #4 rankings: a 54.94 100 free (second in the race behind Xu Yanwei's 54.40) and a 1:58.71 200 free.<\/p>\n
Another 15 year-old Cheng Jiaru clocked 1:01.05 in the 100 back, #3 globally.<\/p>\n
Chinese women rank 1-2-5 in the 200 breast; 1-4 in the 200 IM; 1-3-4-5 in the 400 IM; and high in every other women's event.<\/p>\n
In all, the Chinese have 34 rankings in the top 10 in the 13 Olympic events. By contrast, Chinese men have only two — and both are tenth place.<\/p>\n
The Shanghai provincial 4 x 200m freestyle relay team clocked 7:56.52 — the second fastest time in history, and only 5-hundredths behind the world record still held by a doped East German team. That time would easily have won the World Championships in Fukuoka in July, but in Fukuoka the Chinese national<\/i> team could manage only an 8:08+, which did not make the finals.<\/p>\n
Several Chinese athletes, including one swimmer, were announced as having tested positive in Guangzhou, but clearly the use of drugs is widespread. Chinese officials need to get much more serious about policing the sport of swimming if they are to avoid a major embarrassment before the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.<\/p>\n
RESULTS
\nChinese National Championships
\nGuangzhou, China
\nNovember 2001<\/b><\/p>\n
50 meter pool<\/p>\n
WOMEN<\/p>\n
50 meter freestyle
\n1. 25.02\tXu Yanwei, 17
\n2. 25.51\tShan Ying, 23
\n3. 25.60\tLe Ying, 23
\n4. 25.61\tZhou Xiawei, 21<\/p>\n
100 meter freestyle
\n1. 54.40\tXu Yanwei, 17
\n2. 54.94\tYang Yu, 15
\n3. 55.26\tShan Ying, 23
\n4. 55.42\tWang Dan, 24<\/p>\n
200 meter freestyle
\n1. 1:58.11\tZhang Liang, 17
\n2. 1:58.71\tYang Yu, 15
\n3. 1:59.01\tPang Jiaying, 21
\n4. 1:59.53\tZhu Yingwan, 20
\n5. 1:59.57\tWang Luna, 21
\n6. 1:59.87\tXu Yanwei, 17<\/p>\n
400 meter freestyle
\n1. 4:06.97\tZhang Liang, 17
\n2. 4:07.12\tPang Jiaying, 21
\n3. 4:08.27\tChen Hua, 19
\n4. 4:12.16\tYang Yu, 15
\n5. 4;12.68\tZhang Yan, 16
\n6. 4:12.71\tHe Qian, 19<\/p>\n
800 meter freestyle
\n1. 8:26.48\tZhang Liang, 17
\n2. 8:26.54\tChen Hua, 19
\n3. 8:31.58\tHe Qian, 19
\n4. 8:32.34\tZhang Yan, 16
\n5. 8:34.23 \tPang Jiaying, 21<\/p>\n
100 meter backstroke
\n1. 1:01.05\tCheng Jiaru, 15
\n2. 1:01.17\tZhan Shu, 16
\n3. 1:01.89\tChen Xiujun, 19<\/p>\n
200 meter backstroke
\n1. 2:11.06\tChen Xiujun, 19
\n2. 2:11.50\tZhan Shu, 16
\n3. 2:11.55\tCheng Jiaru, 15
\n4. 2:12.80\tZhong Song, 19<\/p>\n
100 meter breaststroke
\n1. 1:06.96a\tLuo Xuejuan, 17
\n2. 1:08.96\tLuo Nan, 21
\n3. 1:09.12\tQi Hui, 16<\/p>\n
200 meter breaststroke
\n1. 2:24.76\tLuo Nan, 21
\n2. 2:24.80\tQi Hui, 16
\n3. 2:28.04\tLuo Xuejuan, 17
\n4. 2:28.39\tZhang Tianyi, 19<\/p>\n
100 meter butterfly
\n1. 58.77\tZheng Xi, 18
\n2. 59.32\tLiu Xiaoxiao, 17
\n3. 59.35\tLiu Nan, 20
\n4. 59.39\tZhao Jing, 24
\n5. 59.81\tSui Jingjing, 22<\/p>\n
200 meter butterfly
\n1. 2:08.66\tLiu Yin, 17
\n2. 2:08.67\tChen Yan, 20
\n3. 2:08.75\t(name?)
\n4. 2:10.45\tLiu Xiaoxiao, 17<\/p>\n
200 meter individual medley
\n1. 2:11.79\tChen Yan, 20
\n2. 2:13.82\tZhou Yafei, 21
\n3. 2:14.43\tLiu Yin, 17<\/p>\n
400 meter individual medley
\n1. 4:35.22\tChen Yan, 20
\n2. 4:38.20\tQi Hui, 16
\n3. 4:38.96\tLiu Yin, 17
\n4. 4:38.98\tZhou Yafei, 21
\n5. 4:45.10\tNing Bo, 19
\n6. 4:45.68\tChen Hua, 19
\n7. 4:45.73\tZhang Dan, 20<\/p>\n
MEN<\/p>\n
50 meter freestyle
\n1. 22.56\tJiang Chengji, 26
\n2. 23.02\tZhao Lifeng, 23
\n3. 23.20\tChenTietao, 26<\/p>\n
100 meter freestyle
\n1. 50.92\tChen Zuo, 19
\n2. 51.46\tZhao Lifeng, 23
\n3. 51.48\tLi Shang, 22<\/p>\n
200 meter freestyle
\n1. 1:49.77\tLiu Yu, 19
\n2. 1:49.86\tJin Hao, 22
\n3. 1:51.67\tChen Zuo, 19<\/p>\n
400 meter freestyle
\n1. 3:53.18\tYu Cheng, 21
\n2. 3:53.25\tZheng Shubin, 21
\n3. 3:54.75\tJin Hao, 22<\/p>\n
1500 meter freestyle
\n1. 15:15.95\tYu Cheng, 21
\n2. 15:16.22\tZheng Shubin, 21
\n3. 15:18.65\tWu Peng, 21<\/p>\n
100 meter backstroke
\n1. 56.29\tChen Lei, 22
\n2. 56.44\tYu Rui, 19
\n3. 56.63\tChen Cheng, 20<\/p>\n
200 meter backstroke
\n1. 1:59.76\tYu Rui, 19
\n2. 2:00.55\tFu Yang, 23
\n3. 2:02.37\tChen Cheng, 20<\/p>\n
100 meter breaststroke
\n1. 1:02.46\tZheng Qiliang, 24
\n2. 1:02.87\tZhu Yi, 24
\n3. 1:03.34\tYu Daqing, 23<\/p>\n
200 meter breaststroke
\n1. 2:17.17\tCheng Hao, 20
\n2. 2:17.30\tWang Zheng, 20
\n3. 2:17.61\tZhu Yi, 24<\/p>\n
100 meter butterfly
\n1. 53.89\tZhou Jiawei, 21
\n2. 54.14\tOuyang Kunpeng, 19
\n3. 54.92\tCai Zhidin, 21<\/p>\n
200 meter butterfly
\n1. 1:58.89\tWu Peng, 21
\n2. 1:59.03\tJin Hao, 22
\n3. 1:59.94\tWang Hongwei, 19<\/p>\n
200 meter individual medley
\n1. 2:01.87\tJin Hao, 22
\n2. 2:02.40\tXie Xufeng, 23
\n3. 2:06.02\tWang Haizhou, 24<\/p>\n
400 meter individual medley
\n1. 4:18.61\tXie Xufeng, 23
\n2. 4;21.66\tJin Hao, 22
\n3. 4:21.82\tWu Peng, 21<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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