Rio 2016: Swimmer SunYang's journey has a sex and drugs ring to it

Sun Yang's career has mixed tales of sex and drugs with jaw-dropping world records, but China's wild-child star will hope to stay clear of trouble as he anchors his country's Rio Olympics swimming assault

Beijing: Sun Yang's career has mixed tales of sex and drugs with jaw-dropping world records, but China's wild-child star will hope to stay clear of trouble as he anchors his country's Rio Olympics swimming assault. China's swimming team has a reputation for controversies and the man who knows no equal over 1500m is no exception.

Sun Yang

Chief among his indiscretions was a three-month doping suspension in 2014 — served in secret and announced retrospectively — for taking a banned stimulant, which he said he needed for a heart complaint. Sun's rap sheet also includes clashing with officials over his affair with an air hostess, detention time for driving a Porsche SUV that was hit by a bus without a licence and an altercation with a female Brazilian swimmer.

Along the way, Sun lashed the national anthem of China's bitter war-time rivals Japan as "ugly", and turned heads by pulling out of the 2015 world championships 1500m final, again citing a heart problem. But no one would argue with the athletic achievements of Sun, 24, who is China's most successful swimmer.

Brazil's Larissa Oliveira, who accused Sun of trying to kick her

Drama in Kazan
At last year's world championships in Kazan, Russia, Sun won the 400m and 800m but withdrew from the 1500m, blaming a heart condition. Sun was also involved in an angry confrontation with Brazil's Larissa Oliveira in the warm-up pool.

"He was warming up and pulled the Brazilian girl's foot. He ran her over. He tried to elbow her and kick her," said Alberto Pinto da Silva, the Brazil team's coach. "He (Sun) said she was bothering him and one of the coaches said that the pool wasn't just his. Everyone was at the side of the pool, and they were all swearing at each other," added Pinto da Silva, globoesporte.com reported.

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