China reaction to Sun Yang appeal sees fan delight but media warns of defeat at new CAS hearing
- While fans back the country’s star swimmer, media warns that new Court of Arbitration for Sport hearing could see another loss
- Olympic champion’s successful appeal was based on anti-Chinese tweets of CAS panel president Franco Frattini
The news of why Sun Yang’s eight-year ban from the Court of Arbitration for Sport was overruled by the Swiss Supreme Court was met with mixed reaction in China, as fans backed the star swimmer while the media warned of another defeat at the new hearing.
In a media statement issued on Friday, the Swiss Supreme Court explained that their December decision was based on the tweets of Italian president of the panel Franco Frattini, who had used racial and violent language towards China over animal rights abuses.
The topic – “Officially Announced on the Reasons for the Revocation of Sun Yang‘s Suspended Judgment” – trended on Weibo, topping the list of hot searches on the site, with many fans backing the controversial swimmer in online comments.
Sun lost support from some Chinese fans after the February 2020 award by the CAS, which saw him banned for eight years effectively ending his career, but there was vocal backing for the Olympic gold medallist online after Friday’s news. There was also a lot of gallows humour and some anti-Sun sentiment.
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However, Chinese media warned that there may be more heartache ahead for Sun’s fans as the case brought by Wada against the swimmer and Fina returns to CAS for another hearing.
While both sides can return to the Swiss Federal Tribunal if they are not satisfied with the verdict that CAS delivers at the new hearing, it has been pointed out that history is not on the side of the Chinese swimmer with some reports putting his chance of victory at just seven per cent.
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Unless Sun presents new evidence or offers a different defence to the one he adopted at the November 2019 hearing then his chances of success are limited and reports suggested that he is merely delaying the inevitable.
Chinese sports journalist He Xiaolong wrote about this on Weibo, suggesting that this is merely a delay in CAS finding the same way.
“The International Court of Arbitration for Sports announced the reason why the Swiss Supreme Court rejected Sun Yang’s suspension. It was just that a certain judge needed to withdraw, not because of the evidence during the trial and the basis for the suspension. Change a judge, time has been delayed.
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“Sun Yang‘s successful appeal in the Swiss Supreme Court has no meaning other than being a lawyer. It can neither change the fact that he lost the case in the retrial, nor achieve the purpose of crisis public relations and personal image change in China.”
The Swiss Supreme Court did not hear the appeal against Frattini’s fellow judge, Romano Subiotto, having already found in Sun’s favour with his appeal against the former Italian foreign minister.
A new panel, without Frattini, will be convened for the new hearing. While the case was reported as “immediately” returning to CAS it is understood that it will not be heard before April as it is not on the court calendar for the first quarter of the year. As it stands Sun is free to compete at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games beginning in July.
Sun has not posted on his Weibo since the original verdict was announced last February.
