Sun Yang files appeal with Swiss Federal Tribunal against CAS ban
- Chinese swimmer was banned for eight years by Court of Arbitration for Sport in February following public hearing last November
- SFT appeals focus on legal proceedings and success in overturning CAS rulings has proved rare
The website, which is run by the International Swimming Hall of Fame, said that Sun had until April 30 to file the appeal, with the date extended because of the impact of the coronavirus on Switzerland’s highest court of appeal.
Sun’s legal team filed the appeal on April 29, a full day ahead of the deadline.
The triple Olympic champion can appeal with the SFT because the CAS is based in Switzerland, however, appeals are not on the merits of the case but focus solely on the legal process.
As it stands, success in overturning CAS rulings at the SFT is very rare, while Sun’s legal team also appealed twice to the SFT before the delayed CAS hearing to get the case dismissed. Both attempts were unsuccessful.
Sun was banned for eight years from swimming, effectively ending the 28-year-old’s career, in February following a public hearing last November.
‘I can’t go lower than zero’ – CAS lawyer ranks Sun Yang’s performance
Aside from the appeal, which Sun had vowed to do in the aftermath of the verdict announcement from CAS, the swimmer can hope for clemency from swimming’s ruling body and his co-defendant in the CAS hearing, Fina.
The new World Anti-Doping Agency code will come into play on January 1, 2021, with Sun able to appeal to Fina to reduce his ban thereafter.
Can Sun Yang ever make it back to the pool?
The CSA swiftly issued a memo the day after the news broke in Chinese media to say that the call-up was an error.
“There is, as yet, no timetable for the hearing of the appeal,” Swimming World reported. “During that process, Sun Yang remains a suspended athlete and cannot work with any swimmer, coach or other person with official ties to performance training in environments subject to the Wada Code.”
Sun has not been seen in public or on social media since the days following the CAS ruling.
Help us understand what you are interested in so that we can improve SCMP and provide a better experience for you. We would like to invite you to take this five-minute survey on how you engage with SCMP and the news.
