September 23, 2019 — WADA indicated there had been "another act of intimidation taken against the blood collection assistant in this case, an act that WADA believes was taken by someone closely connected to this proceeding and intended to influence whether or how the blood collection assistant might testify". Four days later FINA and Sun objected to the assertion.
October 30, 2019 — WADA informed the court office another act of intimidation had occurred it believed was taken by "someone closely connected to this proceeding … intended to influence how the blood collection assistant and doping control assistant might testify". Sun and FINA again denied they were responsible.
December 5, 2019 — WADA indicated a video recorded by Sun's mother had been publicly released depicting the doping control officer and blood collection assistant. WADA also claimed "someone on the athlete's behalf" had contacted the supervisory body of the hospital where the blood collection assistant worked requesting a meeting with her. Sun again refuted the claims.
December 20, 2019 — WADA alleged Sun had committed an act of intimidation and retaliation against the doping control officer on social media. Sun denied it, emphasising WADA's English translation of the social media post was incorrect.
None of the incidents appear to have been factored in to CAS' final judgment, but they did note Sun's refusal to take any responsibility for his actions during the trial and his disregard for the legal process.
"It was striking that, in the course of his testimony, at no point did the Athlete express any regret as to his actions, or indicate that, with the benefit of hindsight, it might have been preferable for him to have acted differently," it said. "Rather, as the proceedings unfolded, he dug his heels in and, eventually, sought to blame others for the manifest failings that occurred …
"He sought to shift the blame to the DCO, the BCA and the DCA, and at no point, in the appreciation of the Panel, did he confront the possibility that he might have overreacted in his actions.
"The panel further noted that, in the course of the hearing — as occurred during the sample collection process on 4 September 2018 — the Athlete sought to take matters into his own hands: unexpectedly, in the course of the closing statement he was invited to give by the panel, he invited an unknown and unannounced person from the public gallery to join him at his table and act as an impromptu interpreter.
"He did not seem to deem it necessary to seek the permission of the panel, or to otherwise act in a manner which suggested that he respected the authority of others, or of established procedures.
"The athlete is a world-class athlete, with an impressive list of sporting achievements; he is not, however, above the law or legal process. The rules apply to him as they do to all athletes, and he is required to comply with them."
Sun plans to appeal his ban, while FINA is under fire for its handling of the case.
A lawyer for Sun, a hugely popular figure in China, issued a fiery statement on Saturday reiterating that he will appeal, based on "a series of procedural errors".
"February 28, 2020 was a dark day. It shows the scene where evil defeats justice and power replaces self-evident truths," Beijing lawyer Zhang Qihuai said in a statement.
"On this day, CAS listened to prejudice, turned a blind eye to rules and procedures, turned a blind eye to facts and evidence, and accepted all lies and false evidence." The statement reasserted Sun's defence that doping officials who came to his home were not qualified or authorised, and it was they who decided not to pursue testing.
Sun will sue a doping inspector who gave "false evidence", said the lawyer, also accusing the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) of "distorting facts and abuse of power".
