Knighton, who was at the center of the doping scandal, quietly slipped away after the race
2024-08-10
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The men's 200m final of the Paris Olympics track and field event ended on the 8th local time. American athlete Eliyan Knighton, who was found positive in the doping test but was still allowed to participate, finally ranked fourth. Although he failed to win a medal, Knighton is still the focus of attention from the outside world, especially the media. Many reporters hoped to get a few words from Knighton, but they didn't even see him.
Caption: On August 7, American athlete Knighton, Zimbabwean athlete Makalawu, and Liberian athlete Fainbula (from left to right) crossed the finish line in the competition. Photo source: Xinhua News Agency
Knighton was found to be positive for steroids (trenbolone) in an out-of-competition doping test on March 26 this year. However, the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) suddenly made a decision before the start of the Paris Olympic Games domestic qualifiers, claiming that Knighton's positive result was caused by the athlete eating contaminated meat, and decided not to impose a ban on him and allow him to finally represent the United States in the Paris Olympics.
The China Anti-Doping Center previously issued a statement publicly questioning USADA's handling of Knighton's positive doping test, believing that many doubts in the case remain unresolved. It called for an independent investigation into USADA's illegal operations of covering up doping violations of American athletes and allowing them to participate in competitions, and demanded that USADA immediately disclose the details of the case involved.
According to the competition requirements, all athletes must leave the venue through the mixed media interview area. When the 200m race was over, reporters rushed to the mixed media interview area and waited for a long time, but Knighton was nowhere to be seen.In sharp contrast, Knighton's teammate Bednarek, who won the silver medal in the competition, spoke freely to reporters, and even Lyles, who tested positive for the coronavirus, wore a mask to introduce his experiences in the past few days to the media. Only Knighton has not shown up. When a reporter asked a US team staff member about Knighton's whereabouts, she said: "Knighton has left here and did not stay."
Photo caption: American athlete Knighton after the competition on August 7. On the same day, the men's 200m semi-final of the Paris Olympics was held at the Stade de France. Photo source: Xinhua News Agency
Not only that, according to the recollections of his media colleagues, Knighton also walked hurriedly past the interview area of the American TV reporter without saying a word.
Before the Paris Olympics, some Western media frequently hyped up the food contamination incident involving Chinese swimmers in 2021. The World Swimming Federation and the World Anti-Doping Agency have clarified this many times, but some foreign media have repeatedly challenged Chinese swimmers on this issue. Chinese swimmers Zhang Yufei and Wang Shun responded positively based on facts and data such as Chinese athletes actively cooperating with frequent doping tests. Zhang Yufei also asked sharply but politely: "Whether or not there is medication, doping tests can give clear results. Why are Chinese athletes questioned when they swim fast? When American athlete Phelps won 8 gold medals, why didn't anyone dare to question him?"
andWhy are American athletes, who are always expressive, silent this time?
