The U.S. could lose hosting rights for the 2028 Summer and 2034 Winter Olympics due to its investigation into Chinese swimmers under the Rodchenkov Act, warns former IOC member Dick Pound.
Bollywood Fever: The United States may risk losing the 2028 Summer and 2034 Winter Olympics if its law enforcement overreaches in investigating Chinese swimmers, according to former senior International Olympic Committee (IOC) member Dick Pound.
Countries participating in or hosting international sporting events must comply with the anti-doping code. Pound, a Canadian lawyer and key figure in establishing the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), believes the U.S. use of the Rodchenkov Act to investigate positive tests of 23 Chinese swimmers could disqualify it from hosting the Olympics.
The Rodchenkov Act, passed in 2020, extends U.S. law enforcement jurisdiction to any international sports competitions involving American athletes or financial connections to the U.S. “That legislation is non-compliant with the anti-doping code,” Pound told Reuters. “My guess is that WADA will turn this issue over to the compliance review committee. If there’s a hearing, they may declare the United States non-compliant, meaning they could not host the Olympics.”
While WADA did not comment on the potential non-compliance review, other anti-doping officials confirmed that the idea is being discussed. WADA argues that the Rodchenkov Act allows U.S. authorities to relitigate cases already decided, which conflicts with the anti-doping code.
Despite contracts and advanced plans, stripping Los Angeles of the 2028 Olympics seems unlikely. However, Pound mentioned that the IOC might delay confirming Salt Lake City as the host of the 2034 Winter Olympics. Salt Lake is expected to be confirmed as the 2034 host during the IOC Congress next week before the Paris Summer Games, but the IOC could use this as an opportunity to send a message by delaying the confirmation.
Pound suggested that the IOC might consider making the announcement at a session in Puerto Rico in November. “If I were King of the mountain, I would call up (United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee chair) Gene Sykes and say, listen the drums are starting to beat here and it’s this legislation that puts the U.S. offside,” Pound added.
Reuters has contacted the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee, the Salt Lake City bid committee, and the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) for comment. This move could escalate tensions between WADA and USADA, which has accused WADA of a cover-up and called on the FBI and Department of Justice to investigate how the Chinese swimmers tested positive for trimetazidine (TMZ) before the Tokyo Olympics.
The swimmers were cleared by a Chinese investigation, which concluded they were inadvertently exposed to the drug through contamination and allowed to compete at the Tokyo Games. Two independent investigations, one by Swiss prosecutor Eric Cottier and another audit by World Aquatics, found no mismanagement or cover-up by WADA.
The IOC has yet to intervene in the U.S. investigation threat, but the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF) expressed concerns on Friday about sending officials to the U.S. due to fears of arrest.
When you look at the context, this was a national competition, a domestic China competition, there wasn’t an American within 6,000 miles,” Pound said. “Now all of a sudden they’re trying to upgrade this to a Rodchenkov violation, which is just bad.”
Pound warned that the U.S. may risk disqualification from many events if USADA and the U.S. continue on this path, potentially jeopardizing both the 2028 and 2034 Games.
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