Moroccan Ambassador to China Abdelkader El Ansari hosted a welcome ceremony at the Moroccan residence in Beijing on September 6 for the cyclist Karim Mosta, who had successfully cycled from Casablanca, Morocco, to Beijing.
Celebrating Mosta's cross-continent cycling journey, the Ambassador lauded the determination of the 70-year-old Moroccan cyclist, saying that the ride is so amazing that it is a vivid example of friendly people-to-people exchanges between Morocco and China.
Riding the entire route, Mosta also went through a number of countries that have joined the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The Ambassador said that the BRI has promoted the interconnection and economic development of these countries through the construction of infrastructure including roads, airports, ports and rail. Through his journey, Mosta witnessed the fruitful results of the joint efforts.
Ambassador Ansari said that the two countries have a long history of friendly exchanges. In the 14th century, Ibn Battuta, a famous Moroccan traveler, visited China along the ancient Silk Road. It took him many years to reach China by camel, boat and on foot. In the 21st century, when airplanes, automobiles, trains and other means of transportation have been widely used, Mosta's bike ride from Casablanca to Beijing is a testament to his strong willpower and determination.
The Ambassador noted that this ride has many positive implications.
Several districts in Shanghai, China's financial center, have suspended classes, work and public transportation in the face of Typhoon Bebinca, which could become one of the strongest typhoons to hit the city since 1949. The typhoon landed in Shanghai on Monday.
Shanghai's Pudong, Jinshan, Fengxian and Chongming districts issued notices on Sunday, saying that except for government agencies and enterprises to the city's operations, other employers may implement temporary suspensions of work, operations, flights, park activities and business activities, to prepare for Typhoon Bebinca.
The typhoon, which formed on Saturday night, is expected to make landfall on early Monday between areas north of Qidong in East China's Jiangsu Province and south of Ningbo in East China's Zhejiang Province.
All flights departing or landing at either of Shanghai's two airports - Shanghai Pudong International Airport and Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport - after 8 pm Sunday have been canceled.
A total of 127 inter-provincial bus services from Shanghai to Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces have been suspended. The suspension range may be further expanded to include all services based on weather warnings and conditions.
As of Monday morning, more than 414,000 people have been relocated in Shanghai. Starting from 1:00 am Monday, Shanghai has implemented closed control on all expressways within the city.
More than 2,500 emergency response teams, 56,000 rescuers and 415 flood control material warehouses are fully prepared and on standby. Moreover, 12,000 firefighting and rescue personnel have deployed and are ready for action.
Shanghai's Yangshan Port has also evacuated all foreign container ships in preparation for the typhoon.
Li, a Shanghai resident, told the Global Times that she was woken up by the sound of rain tapping on her window and strong winds roaring through the city on Monday morning, knocking down trees in her compound.
"I feel like my building was shaking," Li said.
After Sunday night, many netizens in Shanghai said that they couldn't order takeout. Several media reported that they have contacted the delivery platforms and found out due to the impact of the typhoon, takeout and fresh food delivery services in Shanghai had been suspended. The timing for resuming activities will depend on the typhoon's actual impact.
On Sunday, the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters initiated a Level IV emergency response for flood and typhoon prevention in Anhui Province, while maintaining the Level IV emergency response for flood and typhoon prevention in Shanghai, Jiangsu and Zhejiang.
The headquarters dispatched a working group to Shanghai to assist and guide typhoon prevention efforts, while the previously dispatched working group in Zhejiang continues to work on the front lines.
The Ministry of Emergency Management has mobilized 3,089 engineering rescue personnel, 992 sets of equipment, five helicopters, six drone communication platforms, and 598 social emergency response personnel in key areas such as Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Fujian.
After Typhoon Bebinca makes landfall, it will move further inland. As a result, areas in Shanghai, Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Anhui will experience strong winds and downpour on Monday, with some regions facing torrential downpours.
The city of Haining in East China's Zhejiang Province also warned residents on Monday morning that they should cancel all group activities and schools were asked to suspend classes. All tourists and entertainment venues were closed.
On Monday morning, the expressways in Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu Province were placed under closed management. During the traffic control period, only vehicles for public security, emergency rescue, disaster relief, medical emergencies, essential supplies, and other services related to the national economy and people's livelihoods are allowed to pass.
Over 700 years ago, Italian traveler Marco Polo journeyed through China, documenting his experiences and introducing the splendor of ancient China to Europe in his book. Fast forward to the present day, when people discover China through online videos. With China's visa-free policies and the introduction of 144-hour visa-free transit, a wave of international YouTubers and vloggers has flocked to China.
After exploring gateway cities, where they gain initial insights into China's modern cityscapes and rich cultural heritage, these YouTubers and vloggers soon turn their attention to localized regions, delving into frontier areas, revolutionary sites, and public infrastructure to find the answers to the questions: "What is modern China like, why is it the way it is, and how does it function?"
Through their cameras, they present a real, friendly, and vibrant China to the world. They are affectionately referred to by the Chinese as the "Marco Polos" in the New Era.
Therefore, the Global Times presents this "Marco Polo" Trilogy.
In the third installment, some foreign vloggers who were impressed by China's public healthcare services share with the world why they like the system and what they think other countries can learn from it. "China's healthcare is so bad compared to the US and the West, that is what I often hear in my YouTube comments, but is it true?" a vlogger from the UK whose channel is called "Harvey in China" asks at the beginning of a video he posted on YouTube.
To clear up any misunderstanding and provide detailed insight into specific aspects of China's daily life to more people is the reason driving many vloggers like Harvey to make videos about China's public healthcare system in recent times amid booming travel to China and a growing curiosity about the country around the world.
According to the latest data revealed at a Chinese State Council press conference on Tuesday, from January to July, China recorded 5.722 million inbound international passenger trips, a 403-percent year-on-year increase.
So how is China's healthcare system and is it convenient for foreigners to see a doctor in China? Check what these vloggers say.
A detailed insight
In the less than 10-minute video, Harvey, who has been living in China for about three years, broke down how much it costs to see a doctor in China for the reviewers, how to make an appointment, and what the differences are between China's public healthcare system and those in the UK and the US based on his own experiences and comparisons.
In response to the misconception that healthcare service in China is expensive and only available to rich people, for example, Harvey said that, in a recent visit, he spent 30 yuan or around $4, to see a doctor at a hospital in downtown Shanghai, while the average salary in the city is reportedly about 13,500 yuan per month. "So, spending 30 yuan to be seen by a doctor is affordable to the general population."
The level of technological integration in China's public healthcare system also impressed Harvey. "Appointments, prescriptions, [and] even payments can be managed through a single app on the phone. This integration of technology has made the entire process smoother." Conversely, in the UK, "one still has to call at exactly 8 am as soon as the line is open to try and get an appointment to see the doctor."
"The combination of affordability, accessibility, and technological integration makes China's healthcare system a model worth considering for other nations while it is not without its challenges… hopefully we can take a thing or two from China's approach and implement it into our own systems," Harvey concluded.
Harvey's video has been watched nearly 18,000 times as of Tuesday.
It struck a chord with many viewers who also shared their experiences in the comments of how efficient China's public healthcare service is.
"I was in China and my daughter got sick. Being a foreign visitor, I was helped by our host to visit a doctor at a small simple clinic. She was attended to in a second, checked, and prescribed a bunch of medication. [It] cost us 15 yuan all in all and in two days my daughter got well. Amazing system," a YouTube user commented on Harvey's video.
An efficient system
Convenient and affordable medical services are major advantages of China's public healthcare system that have been mentioned by many foreign vloggers.
"I was really impressed by the facilities and efficiency. In one day, I completed all the examinations and received the results quickly," Thibaut Grzelak, a 27-year-old French engineer and vlogger, told the Global Times.
Grzelak has been working at a French company's branch in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang Province, for about one year.
He went to a local hospital for a routine examination and a blood test in July. He said that his only concern before going to the hospital was about the language barrier. "It's always difficult to describe symptoms and feelings, even in your mother tongue, so doing it in English or Chinese is challenging."
Grzelak asked his Chinese girlfriend to go to the hospital with him in case he needed help with translating. But it turned out that most doctors there could speak English. There were also English signs to help find doctors, and many people were willing to help if needed.
"The doctor identified my problem and provided the appropriate treatment. The total cost was very reasonable, at about 100 yuan. If I ever need to go back to the hospital, even for a major surgery, I wouldn't hesitate to do it here!" he said.
Mylene, a French food and fashion influencer, told the Global Times that, in France, it is unimaginable to finish seeing a doctor, conduct examinations, and receive a diagnosis within a day.
France does not have such a system for patients to make appointments and go to a hospital at any time. Moreover, each French doctor only accepts a certain number of patients. When Mylene's gynecologist retired, there was no other gynecologist with available slots for new patients. So, she waited for one to two years until a new gynecologist came to work in the city she lived.
Mylene was also a fan of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). It costs about 70 euros in France to see a TCM doctor, but in China it only costs a normal appointment fee, usually 10 yuan, to see an experienced TCM doctor, she said. A vivid China
China has impressed the world with its strength in infrastructure construction and its speed in technological innovation and application.
This time, a growing focus on the country's healthcare system is believed to serve as a specific opportunity that would allow the world to have a real and detailed glimpse into China's achievements in promoting people's living standards as the system is widely viewed as a fundamental aspect of a society that reflects not just the overall well-being of the population, but also the effectiveness of governance.
When vlogger Lizzy tried to search for Chinese hospitals in YouTube in May "there was actually nothing on there."
"There are a lot of bad things that are always on there because of COVID, but there's actually no normal video of Chinese hospitals," said Lizzy, a vlogger from South Africa, who has lived in China for about five years.
Lizzy thus decided to record the process of her seeing doctors at a hospital in Kunming, capital of Southwest China's Yunnan Province, after something went wrong with her knees.
The video did play a role in changing some foreign-held stereotypes about China and allowed more people to learn about the Chinese healthcare system. "Very nice video! You inspire me to visit China," a netizen commented while complaining that the media in their country barely reports positive things about China.
Chinese authorities and industries are also eager to seize this opportunity to expand the country's medical tourism market while showcasing the world its medical capacity and development.
In February, Sanya in South China's Hainan Province optimized its visa-free policy by expanding the reasons for entry without a visa for people from 59 countries to Hainan to include medical treatment purposes.
Famous for its tropical coastal scenery, TCM health preservation industry, as well as distinctive ethnic traditional culture, TCM hospitals in Sanya have been providing medical tourism services since 2002. So far, more than 100,000 international tourists entering China via Sanya have enjoyed the service, as reported by People's Daily on August 9.
Lieutenant General He Lei, former vice president of the Academy of Military Sciences of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), had a casual talk with Michael Chase, US deputy assistant secretary of defense, on Friday, as the recent momentum of China-US military engagement continues.
The two sides met at a cafe in the Beijing International Convention Center that is hosting the ongoing 11th Beijing Xiangsha Forum, the annual military diplomacy conference with unprecedented participation this year from over 100 countries and organizations.
Chase, who is leading a delegation of US Department of Defense at the Beijing Xiangshan Forum, shook hands with He, while He presented souvenirs to Chase and the US delegation.
According to the reporter's observation at the scene, the conversation between the two sides was relaxed and pleasant.
He also showed a photo between himself and Cynthia Xanthi Carras, China country director in the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense, and asked Chase to pass the photo to Carras. Carras attended the 10th Beijing Xiangshan Forum in 2023 and talked with He.
"[I] hope you can have some gains in this event and take them back to the US," He told Chase.
In an interview with the Global Times after meeting with Chase, He said the meeting was a chance encounter, but turned out to be a nice talk.
“During the coffee break of the conference, I happened to meet Chase in the cafe. I began by welcoming him to China,” He said.
“The visit of Chase himself and the Pentagon delegation he is leading is a positive move to help implement the consensus reached between the two heads of state in San Francisco,’’ He said. “It is beneficial to enhancing strategic communication between the senior military officials from the two sides, and to avoid miscalculation and manage risks.”
According to He, Chase has expressed his interest in China’s defense policy.
In response, He said he has shown Chase a badge of the Academy of Military Sciences of the PLA, in which there are images of the Great Wall and an olive branch.
“The Great Wall represents defense, implying that China pursues a national defense policy that is defensive in nature and will not invade any country,” He said. “The olive branch represents peace, which he knows well.”
The PLA is a heroic force of resolutely defending national interests, and also a force of justice in safeguarding regional and world peace, He said.
He expressed hopes that Chinese and US militaries could have more engagement during the forum, so that the US side could have a better understanding of China’s defense policy.
Chase said he plans to visit the Academy of Military Sciences of the PLA in the coming days, to which He replied that it was “a good thing.” He also presented souvenirs of the PLA institute to Chase and other delegation members on site.
He also mentioned that obstacles and problems between the two militaries and two countries cannot be easily solved through one or two talks. H owever, through communication, the two sides can further meet each other halfway and enhance mutual understanding.
“I expressed hope that the US delegation could make more contributions to the relationship between the two militaries and two countries,” He said. “I also hope that the US can make more contributions in terms of maintaining regional and world peace and stability.”
Starting from Friday, drones have been used to deliver food and essential supplies to visitors at the Badaling section of the Great Wall, marking Beijing's first unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) logistics delivery.
The South Ninth Tower of the Badaling section was opened to the public at the end of 2023. To preserve the original appearance of the Great Wall, no commercial facilities have been set up in this area, making it difficult for visitors to replenish supplies such as drinking water and food, according to the Xinhua News Agency.
To address this problem, the Badaling Great Wall Scenic Area partnered with a delivery platform to launch Beijing's first drone logistics delivery route in the area. Visitors can now scan a QR code with their cell phones to log in to the delivery platform, and they can receive items such as medicine, drinking water and food delivered by UAVs in as little as five minutes.
The drone takes off from the rooftop of the Badaling Hotel. When a merchant in the scenic area receives an order from a visitor, a delivery person will quickly collect the order and bring it to the drone takeoff point. The delivery is then weighed, packaged and handed over to ground personnel who secure it to the drone and execute the delivery instructions.
During the initial test flights, there were many orders for items like drinking water and emergency medicines, reports said. The drone delivery service operates from 10 am to 4 pm.
After the delivery hours, these drones switch roles to assist with waste management, a task that has traditionally been labor-intensive.
Using UAVs for delivery improves the visitors' experience by providing quick access to essential supplies like drinking water, food and emergency medicines in remote sections, where traditional commercial facilities are not available. This is particularly important in the South Ninth Tower area, where visitors would otherwise have to endure long walks before obtaining basic necessities.
In the future, UAV logistics delivery might be considered for more scenarios to address delivery challenges in hard-to-reach areas where delivery personnel struggle to arrive quickly, bringing even more convenience, experts said.
A summer camp was held at the Tianjin University in Tianjin from August 11 to August 24, with the aim to strengthen higher education cooperation and exchanges between the ASEAN and China, and improve student enthusiasm for learning marine science and technology. The Education Counsellor of the Malaysian Embassy in China Muhammad Sallehuddin delivered a speech at the opening ceremony of the Blue Ocean Summer Camp on August 11.
Sallehuddin shared with the students the benefits of participating in the student exchange programs, which are strengthening self-improvement and developing leadership skills to become future leaders.
The summer camp promotes comprehensive cooperation and exchanges between universities in ASEAN member countries and Chinese universities in the fields of talent training, scientific research, and cultural exchanges. A total of 19 ASEAN students participated in the summer camp, including five from Malaysia.
Featuring about 70 sessions, the education cooperation week has developed into a high-end platform and bridge making positive contributions to China-ASEAN relations.
Magdalena Czechonska, director of the Culture Office at the Embassy of the Republic of Poland in China visited the "Instant and Eternity," a Polish Amber Culture and Art Exhibition at the Tianjin Museum on August 20.
This is the first international exhibition introduced by the Tianjin Museum in recent years. It is also an important cultural exchange project between Poland and China.
The exhibition features at least 600 artworks made of amber. Artifacts featured in the exhibition include a Fairy Tale Chess set made of silver and amber, a set of art jewelry by Iwona Tamborska, a dress decorated with amber, as well as an amber seal selected from the Han Dynasty (206BC-AD220). Many visitors may not know that three-quarters of global sales of amber come from Poland. Czechonska also met Yao Yang, director of the Tianjin Museum.
The exhibition is open until August 25.
China and Poland boast a long history and profound cultural traditions, and people-to-people and cultural exchanges between the two sides have become increasingly active in recent years.
The People's Bank of China (PBC), the country's central bank, has conducted three major monetary policy adjustments to precisely support economic growth this year, and it will continue to strengthen counter-cyclical and cross-cyclical adjustments to consolidate the economic recovery, said PBC Governor Pan Gongsheng.
China's financial system is stable overall, with risks in key sectors being resolved in an orderly fashion, Pan said in an interview with state broadcaster China Central Television on Saturday.
The central bank will make significant efforts in the areas of technology finance, green finance, inclusive finance, pension finance and digital finance, Pan said, and it will continue to promote financial opening-up by increasing the transparency, stability and predictability of relevant policies.
The third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China pointed to efforts to deepen reform of the financial system. It said that the country will move faster to improve the central bank system and the monetary policy transmission mechanism.
Reforms outlined in the resolution adopted by the third plenum chart the direction of monetary and fiscal policies as well as industrial development policies so as to enhance social expectations, Cong Yi, a professor at the Tianjin School of Administration, told the Global Times on Sunday.
Amid the trend of interest rate cuts in major economies, it is expected that the PBC may announce cuts to interest rates or the reserve requirement ratio by the end of 2024, Wen Bin, chief economist at China Minsheng Bank, told the Global Times.
Thanks to favorable factors including a low interest rate environment, stable real estate market and policies to boost consumption, consumers' willingness to spend and borrow will gradually recover, he said.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Friday concluded his visit to Belarus, during which Beijing and Minsk pledged to further promote practical cooperation in various fields ranging from trade, finance, security and agriculture to science and technology, and education, according to a joint communique released by the Chinese Foreign Ministry on Friday.
Analysts said Premier Li's visit to Belarus demonstrates a high-level political mutual trust and the momentum of close cooperation between the two countries. The expanding China-Belarus cooperation will also inject impetus into the steady development of bilateral relations and also play an exemplary role in the region.
Li arrived in Minsk on Thursday after co-chairing the 29th regular meeting between the Chinese and Russian heads of government in Moscow and a visit to Russia.
During a meeting with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Thursday local time, Premier Li said that China stands ready to work with the Belarusian side to push for the high-level development of their all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership to better benefit the two peoples.
Li said that China-Belarus relations, regardless of how the international situation changes, have always shown vigor and vitality since the establishment of diplomatic ties 32 years ago.
Noting that China will continue to firmly support Belarus in pursuing a development path suited to its national conditions, Li said that China stands ready to further synergize development strategies with Belarus, solidly advance cooperation in various fields, steadily expand trade scale.
Lukashenko hailed that Belarus-China relations are enjoying a strong momentum of development and are at an all-time high. He said that Belarus stands ready to maintain close high-level exchanges with China, and to deepen practical cooperation in the fields of economy, trade, agriculture, science and technology.
In meeting with Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko, Li said China stands ready to work with Belarus to firmly support each other in defending core interests and remain each other's true friend and good partner.
In the joint communique, the two sides also expressed that they will firmly oppose external forces' interference in other countries' internal affairs under any pretext.
The communique said that Belarus reiterates its firm commitment to the one-China principle, firmly opposes any form of "Taiwan independence" and firmly supports the Chinese government in achieving national reunification.
On regional hotspot issues, the two sides expressed support for peaceful resolution of conflicts and constructive bilateral dialogue between countries.
Yang Jin, an associate research fellow with the Institute of Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times that Premier Li's visit to Minsk highlights a high-level political mutual trust and the momentum of close cooperation between China and Belarus, which will continue in the future.
Premier Li's visit is also part of frequent political interactions between the two countries in recent years. President Lukashenko visited China twice in 2023. He also met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Astana, Kazakhstan, in July 2024.
Zhao Huirong, an Eastern European studies expert from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said that exchanges at the government level will effectively implement the strategic plans of the two heads of state, consolidate political trust and provide new impetus for the steady development of bilateral relations.
"China-Belarus relations are a role model of a new type of international relations," Zhao said, "The two countries uphold mutual respect, mutual benefit, and share the same views on the international order and affairs, which is why they have achieved fruitful results in both bilateral and multilateral cooperation."
Expanding scope
In terms of practical cooperation, the China-Belarus joint communique said the two countries will enhance cooperation in industrial supply chains, and cooperation in service trade and e-commerce.
The communique said the two sides will jointly promote the high-quality development of the China-Belarus Industrial Park, and agreed to strengthen cooperation on China-Europe freight trains by promoting infrastructure connectivity, and jointly ensuring the safety of the China-Europe freight train transport corridor.
The two sides have also expressed willingness to strengthen cooperation in agriculture and welcome each other's high-quality agricultural products to enter their markets.
In addition to the traditional cooperative sectors, the communiques said the two countries will carry out mutually beneficial cooperation in the fields of information and communication technology.
The two sides said they will deepen cooperation in biomedicine, culture and tourism, sports, news and communication.
The communique said that the two sides will support practical cooperation between scientific research institutions, universities and enterprises, and encourage the establishment of joint laboratories, joint applied research centers, joint ventures, high-tech parks and other scientific research institutions.
The document said the two countries will expand interbank credit and financial cooperation and expand channels for bilateral financial cooperation. The two sides hope to increase the proportion of local currency used in bilateral trade, investment, credit and other economic transactions and establish an effective local currency settlement system.
According to Yang, the communiques demonstrate three characteristics of China-Belarus cooperation: "rich in content, pragmatic, and high in quality."
China-Belarus cooperation also reflects the concrete measures taken by China to implement the spirit of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), which includes further expanding high-standard opening-up and expanding high-quality international cooperation.
"Belarus appreciates the development experience of Chinese modernization and hopes to learn from China's experience in governance," Zhao said, adding that cooperation with China in various fields can also help Belarus effectively maintain national stability and economic development.
On Thursday, the two countries also inked an agreement on trade in services and investments, which will further tap the potential of trade in services and investment cooperation and promote the high-quality joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Cui Hongjian, a professor from the Academy of Regional and Global Governance with Beijing Foreign Studies University said that China-Belarus cooperation will play an exemplary role in the region, as Belarus is not only an important partner but also a crucial hub for BRI and China-Europe freight trains.
Through some institutionalized, long-term frameworks, the two sides can further activate the potential for sustainable development in the areas of trade in services and also some emerging industries such as new energy and digital economy, Cui said.
According to data from the Chinese Foreign Ministry, China is the second-largest trading partner of Belarus and its largest trading partner in Asia, with bilateral trade exceeding $8.4 billion in 2023.
The Chinese swim team has faced unprecedented levels of anti-doping scrutiny, undergoing nearly 200 tests administered by the International Testing Agency (ITA) since arriving in France, according to Yu Liang, the national swim team nutritionist.
This intensive testing regime has sparked concerns about the impact on athletes' rest and preparation for the upcoming Paris Olympics. Yu highlighted the disruption caused by the frequent tests.
"We've been in France for 10 days now, and during these 10 days, our 31 athletes have not only been training and adjusting to the time difference but have also been subjected to nearly 200 doping tests by the ITA, averaging almost 20 tests per day," Yu said in a social media post on Sina Weibo.
The Chinese national swim team is now training in Deauville before moving to Paris.
"Each athlete has been tested 5-7 times on average. The tests come early in the morning before we're even awake, during midday rest periods, forcing us to rest on hotel lobby sofas, and even late at night, keeping us up past midnight."
Yu's Sina Weibo post was later deleted for unspecified reasons, but it has already been widely circulated on social media.
An unnamed official within the ITA acknowledged the high frequency of testing but insisted it was part of the mandated plan.
"The number of tests is indeed excessive, but we can't do anything about it - it's all part of the plan given to us from above," the unnamed official said as quoted by Yu.
"I can't imagine the cooperation level you and the Chinese athletes have shown. If it were another team, they would have been complaining loudly and filing complaints all over the place by now."
The increased scrutiny of Chinese swimmers is set against a backdrop of ongoing tensions between the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the US.
Former senior International Olympic Committee member Dick Pound warned that the US' legal overreach, specifically through the Rodchenkov Act, could jeopardize the US' status as a future Olympic host. This Act, which extends US jurisdiction over international sporting events, is seen as non-compliant with WADA's anti-doping code.
Pound suggested that WADA might review US compliance, potentially affecting Los Angeles' hosting of the 2028 Summer Olympics and Salt Lake City's bid for the 2034 Winter Olympics.
"The Rodchenkov Act is problematic," Pound said in an interview with the Reuters news agency published on Wednesday.
"It's out of step with the international anti-doping code and could lead to the US being declared non-compliant."
Chinese swimmers have been subjected to far more tests than their US counterparts. Data from the Aquatics Integrity Unit shows that top Chinese swimmers like Zhang Yufei, Qin Haiyang, and Li Bingjie each underwent over 40 anti-doping tests in 2023. In contrast, leading US swimmers such as Lilly King, Caeleb Dressel, and Katie Ledecky were tested around 10 times.
The scrutiny intensified following positive tests for the banned substance trimetazidine (TMZ) by 23 Chinese swimmers during a 2021 domestic competition. Subsequent investigations attributed the results to contaminated food, a conclusion accepted by both WADA and World Aquatics.
Despite this, the ITA has mandated that Chinese athletes be tested at least eight times from January 1, 2024, to the start of the Paris Olympics, double the frequency of athletes from other countries.
Additionally, these tests are to be conducted by non-Chinese authorities, and samples analyzed outside of China to ensure impartiality, according to swimming's governing body World Aquatics.
The swimming events at the Paris Olympics are set to begin on July 27, a day after the opening ceremony.
