Top Chinese Swimmers Tested Positive for Banned Drug, Then Won Olympic Gold
"China acknowledged the positive tests in a report by its antidoping regulator, saying that the swimmers had ingested the banned substance unwittingly and in tiny amounts, and that no action against them was warranted.
[...] Even after other national and international antidoping officials repeatedly provided the global regulator, known as WADA, with intelligence suggesting a cover-up and doping by Chinese swimmers, the agency chose not to try to hold the athletes accountable, asserting “a lack of any credible evidence” to challenge China’s version of events. WADA defended its decision not to take action, calling the criticism unsubstantiated
[...] Chinese investigators described how many of the country’s best swimmers were staying at the same hotel for a domestic meet in the final days of 2020 and the first days of 2021. Two months after the swimmers tested positive for the banned substance — a prescription heart drug that can enhance performance — Chinese investigators reported finding trace amounts of the substance in the hotel’s kitchen."
--- Totally coincidental, of course. Everything easily explained away. & WADA really wants to believe Chinese stories.
"Samples are supposed to be immediately sent to an accredited laboratory, analyzed and reported to WADA and World Aquatics, the association that governs world swimming. But for reasons that remain unclear, the results of the tests in Shijiazhuang were not reported to the computer management system that tracks all testing of athletes until March 15, 2021, two and a half months later. Chinada said that WADA had allowed it to freeze the tests for a month after they were collected because of the pandemic."
--- Ah, the pandemic, of course. It's all the Wuhan virus' fault.
"“in order to protect athletes’ privacy and cooperate with the investigation, please keep athletes’ information and the case strictly confidential until it is publicly disclosed by Chinada.”"
--- As we all know, China is really big on privacy.
Blinken heading back to China, with a threat over military aid to Russia
"We're prepared to take steps when we believe necessary against firms that ... severely undermine security in both Ukraine and Europe," a State Department official told reporters ahead of Blinken's trip."
--- 'They are prepared...' Sounds better than what Scholz did, but considering the effectivity of previous US sanctions under Biden, I doubt that much will come of it.
Millions at risk of floods in China’s Guangdong province after heavy rain
"Major rivers, waterways and reservoirs in China’s Guangdong province are threatening to unleash dangerous floods, forcing the government to enact emergency response plans to protect more than 127 million people.
Calling the situation “grim”, local weather officials said sections of rivers and tributaries at the Xijiang and Beijiang river basins are hitting water levels in a rare spike that only has a one-in-50 chance of happening in any given year, the state broadcaster CCTV news said on Sunday."
--- Well, 1 in 50... I remember at least one similar situation in 2005 or 2006 from Shaoguan. & there was quite severe flooding a few years later as well, IIRC.
House passes Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan aid, potential TikTok ban
"A fourth bill includes a measure to force China’s ByteDance to sell social media platform TikTok within nine months — though the president can offer a 90-day extension — or face a national ban."
--- Shame that this doesn't get the attention it deserves. But maybe there will be more news over the next few days.
No, Southeast Asians do not now prefer China over the US
Maldives: Muizzu's pro-China party claims landslide victory
China's latest supersonic spy drone looks a lot like the Lockheed D-21 that crashed there in 1971
--- China Uncensored: "The CCP is Rebuilding the Russian Army"
--- WION: China holds biennial meeting of top foreign naval officials
Massendoping-Verdacht in China - WADA handelt nicht
"Dem Bericht zufolge seien die positiven Fälle durch Kontamination zustande gekommen. In einer Hotelküche in Shijiazhuang sei für sämtliche betroffenen Athleten Essen gekocht worden. Aus dem Report geht hervor, dass mehr als zwei Monate später Ermittler die Küche inspiziert und dabei Spuren von Trimetazidin im Dunstabzug, an Gewürzcontainern sowie im Abfluss gefunden hätten.
Einen Beweis für ihre Behauptungen legen die Chinesen in dem Dokument nicht vor. Sie erklären auch nicht, welche Person angeblich in der Hotelküche das verschreibungspflichtige Medikament Trimetazidin bei sich geführt haben soll. Sie gaben trotzdem an, dass das wahrscheinlichste Verabreichungsszenario sei: vom Gewürzcontainer in Pfanne oder Kochtopf – und von dort in die Mahlzeiten der Athleten."
--- Total unschuldig natürlich. Alles reiner Zufall.
"Die WADA teilte auf ARD-Anfrage mit, sie habe auf Basis der Analysedaten "keine Grundlage” gesehen, die "Erklärungen der Kontamination anzufechten"."
--- Denn wir wissen ja, daß man chinesischen Offiziellen unbesehen trauen kann.
Repräsentantenhaus stellt TikTok ein Ultimatum
"Das US-Repräsentantenhaus hat erneut für ein Gesetz gestimmt, das die beliebte Kurzvideo-App TikTok aus China unter amerikanische Kontrolle bringen soll. Die Parlamentskammer in Washington nahm den Entwurf am Samstag mit einer großen überparteilichen Mehrheit an.
Das Gesetz könnte zur Verbannung von TikTok aus amerikanischen App-Stores führen, wenn der Dienst weiter im Besitz des chinesischen Konzerns ByteDance bleibt. Der Entwurf sieht eine Frist von neun Monaten für einen Verkauf vor. US-Präsident Joe Biden kann diese um drei weitere Monate erweitern."
--- Abgestimmt wurde über ein Paket von Gesetzen, u.a. mit Hilfen für die Ukraine & Israel. Aber immerhin... So langsam zieht sich die Schlinge zu.
Überschwemmungen bedrohen Millionen Chinesen
"Unter Berufung auf die örtliche Hydrologiebehörde meldete CCTV, dass drei Orte im Becken des Bei-Flusses aufgrund starker Niederschläge Überschwemmungen erleben würden, "wie sie nur einmal in einem Jahrhundert vorkommen"."
--- Eher alle 10 bis 20 Jahre mal.
Militärische Diplomatie: Auch USA bei Treffen von Marineoffizieren in China
Hacker nahmen VW jahrelang ins Visier
