Boxer tests positive during Chinese Games

Shenyang (China), Sep 12 (IANS): A male boxer from the Yunnan delegation tested positive for a banned substance during the preliminary stage of the Chinese National Games, the event organisers said Thursday.

Yang Jienan, at the men’s 49kg class, was found positive of furosemide, a diuretic. His B sample was also tested positive and the boxer has been stripped of the qualification to compete in the boxing events at the National Games which will conclude here later Thursday, reports Xinhua.

According to the organisers, a total of 2,391 anti-doping tests have been carried out during the 12 competition days of the quadrennial games, including 2,179 urine tests and 212 blood tests.

The Games, billed as the mini-Olympics in China, however, did see some ugly scenes when the Beijing team threw the women’s rugby final against the Shandong team in a protest to controversial refereeing and synchronized swimming twin sisters Jiang Wenwen and Jiang Tingting from team Sichuan questioned the scores they earned in the duet final which they believed could be lowered on purpose in favour of the local swimmers.

The Hainan youth volleyball team were also caught for age fraud as they tried to qualify from the preliminaries by fielding senior players.