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S Korea's swimming star Park Tae-hwan fails a doping test

SEOUL — South Korea’s former Olympic swim champion Park Tae-hwan has failed a recent doping test, his agency said today (Jan 27).

South Korea's Park Tae-hwan holds his silver medal for the men's 400m freestyle final during the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Aquatics Centre July 28, 2012. Photo: Reuters

South Korea's Park Tae-hwan holds his silver medal for the men's 400m freestyle final during the London 2012 Olympic Games at the Aquatics Centre July 28, 2012. Photo: Reuters

SEOUL — South Korea’s former Olympic swim champion Park Tae-hwan has failed a recent doping test, his agency said today (Jan 27).

Team GMP said in a statement that Park tested positive for a substance banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency but didn’t immediately disclose what the substance was and when the swimmer took the test.

The 25-year-old has been a national swimming hero in South Korea since he won a gold medal in the 400m freestyle at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. It was South Korea’s first Olympic medal in any swimming event and no other South Korean swimmer has since won an Olympic swimming medal. Park claimed two silvers in the 400m and 200m freestyle events in the 2012 London Olympics.

“Park Tae-hwan is more shocked by the results of a doping test than anyone else,” the Team GMP statement said.

Team GMP officials blamed the results on an injection administered to the swimmer by a local hospital, which offered him free chiropractic and other treatments two months before last year’s Asian Games held in the South Korean city of Incheon. Park won one silver and five bronze medals at the Asian Games and he passed several doping tests during the event, according to Team GMP and swimming officials.

Team GMP officials said the hospital had earlier told them the injection didn’t contain any prohibited substance, but it was later found that it had a banned substance. Team GMP said it’s preparing to take a legal action against the hospital to find why it gave Park the injection.

The Seoul-based Korea Swimming Federation says it is discussing Park’s case and that it has no further official comment. AP

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