By Keith Dunlap on SwimSwam
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has withdrawn its defamation lawsuit against the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) and an ethics complaint against former U.S. drug czar Rahul Gupta.
USADA CEO Travis Tygart said the news was “complete vindication for us both.”
At the heart of the lawsuit was a disagreement between the organizations over WADA’s handling of a doping case involving Chinese swimmers who tested positive in 2021 six months before the Tokyo Games, but didn’t receive any sanctions after the country’s anti-doping agency said the positive tests were the result of contamination.
WADA filed the defamation lawsuit in Swiss court and said in a letter sent to its leadership that it would have succeeded, but ultimately decided to withdraw the lawsuit anyway.
“While we remain convinced that the lawsuit would be successful on merits, we have determined that it is futile to argue with somebody who is unwilling to accept clear evidence, whose only goal is to damage WADA and the global anti-doping system,” the letter said.
WADA commissioned an independent investigation and found that it acted “reasonably,” a process that drew ire from critics.
Gupta said in a letter to the New York Times that the dropped claims “clearly demonstrate the meritless and politically motivated claims that WADA leaders attempted to pursue against the United States.”
As a result of the standoff, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, which was headed by Gupta during Joe Biden’s administration, didn’t pay its $3.6 million in annual dues to WADA.
A reported 23 Chinese swimmers had positive doping tests ahead of the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
The controversy was heightened at last summer’s Paris Olympics, when China won the gold medal in the 4X100 medley relay.
Qin Haiyang, a member of that relay team who faced allegations, was quoted as saying “Any doubt is just a joke. Stress only makes us stronger.”
Adam Peaty, a member of Great Britain’s team, said “there’s no point winning if you’re not fair.”
U.S. swimming legend Michael Phelps also chimed in on the issue, saying to the AP that, “if you test positive, you should never be allowed to come back and compete, cut and dry. I believe one and done.”
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