China's most decorated swimmer has made a winning return to the pool after serving a

controversial four-year drugs ban. Sun Yang won gold in the men's 400m freestyle at

China's National Summer Swimming Championships in Hefei on Sunday - and then broke

down while speaking to reporters.

He had been previously vilified by many in China as a drugs cheat, but his return was

praised across state media. His win on Sunday comes shortly after a highly publicized anti-

doping row at the Paris Olympics this summer, in which China said its athletes were being

unfairly targeted. In a tearful poolside interview with reporters, the 32-year-old thanked

those close to him for helping him get back to competing.

Sun was suspended by the Court of Arbitration for Sport in 2020 for refusing to provide

samples for testers who had visited his home. In 2012, Sun became China's first male

swimmer to win an Olympic gold when he came first in the 400m and 1,500m freestyle

races in London. Four years, he followed this up with gold in the 200m freestyle at the Rio

Olympics. But his career came crashing down when anti-doping officials visited his home in

2018 for an out-of-competition test.

Sun and his team said the testers lacked the proper accreditation and refused to co-

operate with them. According to the testing team, a member of Sun’s entourage smashed a

vial of his blood with a hammer to prevent them from departing with the sample. Sun - who

had already been suspended for three months in 2014 for using the banned substance

Trimetazidine - denied any wrongdoing and he was initially cleared by swimming's

governing body Fina.

Two years later, however, Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned the decision and ruled

that Sun had refused to cooperate with the sample testers. He was given an eight-year

ban, which was later reduced to four years and three months on appeal. As he had never

technically tested positive for any banned substances, Sun was allowed to keep all of his

medals. His victory on Sunday was widely hailed in Chinese state media outlets, whose