China’s Sun Yang in line for big pay day despite drug cloud hanging over his head
- Three-time Olympic champion expected to compete in new Fina competition that has a total purse of US$3.9 million
- The highly controversial swimmer could earn more than US$90,000 before he faces a tribunal over his drug-test refusal
Controversial Chinese swimmer Sun Yang is expected to earn more than US$90,000 competing in an invitation-only Fina competition even though he faces a tribunal over a drug-test refusal and could be banned for life.
The 27-year-old three-time Olympic champion is in line to earn a financial windfall for less than 17 minutes of racing in the three-leg Champions Swim Series that will kick off in Guangzhou from April 27-28. The second leg will be held in Budapest, Hungary from May 11-12 while the third leg will be staged in Indianapolis from May 31-June 1.
Sun is expected to compete against some of the world’s best swimmers in all three legs of the newly created competition that has a total purse of US$3.9 million – the biggest pay day in swimming history. According to SwimSwam, Sun is down to compete in all three legs that will see first-place winners in the individual races earn US$10,000.
China’s most decorated swimmer, who has already served a ban for doping among other controversies in and out of the pool, is expected to compete in the 200m and 400m freestyle at every leg, meaning he could rake in more than US$90,000.
Sun stepped into more controversy when in January The Sunday Times reported Sun had rejected an out-of-competition doping test at his home in Zhejiang last September and clashed with testers. It was alleged Sun’s mother had ordered security guards to smash a vial of Sun’s blood taken in a nearby clubhouse. China’s Xinhua news agency later said the doping testers had failed to show adequate proof of identification.