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Speed it up Australian swim coach encourages faster drug tests
Posted: Tuesday August 10, 1999 09:49 AM
BRISBANE, Australia (AP) -- Australian head coach Don Talbot called on swimming's world governing body FINA on Tuesday to speed up drug testing procedures which caught another two repeat offenders from China. Xiong Guoming and Wang Wei both tested positive for the anabolic steroid clenbuterol in an out-of-competition test in March of this year. It was the second offense for both swimmers. Xiong's ban takes effect immediately, while Wang's will run from Apr. 13 next year -- the date on which he finishes his current two-year ban. Both swimmers have been disqualified from any competitions they have taken part in since March 8. "How much more evidence do we need before we ban someone for life?" Talbot said Tuesday. He was also critical of FINA for taking five months to hand down the suspensions. "This means swimmers can get tested before an Olympics and while we're waiting for the results, they could win a gold medal and get the accolades before we find out they're cheats," Talbot said. "You've taken the glory away from the swimmers that deserve it and then you have to go to all the trouble of getting the medal back and changing the results. The process is far too slow -- it shouldn't take five months. "FINA have to look at it more carefully and they should be able to expedite it." The Chinese Swimming Association (CSA) announced it would carry out its own investigation and declared the swimmers' coaches would also be banned.
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