China swim star Sun 'no drug cheat' - coach Cotterell

Chinese swim king Sun Yang is no drug cheat and has been the victim of "ill-informed" protests from athletes at the world championships, insists his Australian coach.

Denis Cotterell has worked with the 11-time world champion since the 2008 Beijing Olympics and maintains China's sporting idol is clean, claiming critics are guilty of double standards in casting Sun as the villain.

"He's not a drug cheat," Cotterell told AFP at the world championships in Gwangju, South Korea.

"That's from everything, all my working with him, from the meticulous care he takes with what he ingests -- everything I've seen from day dot.

"I don't know if people think he was given a magic pill at birth and it's sustained him for all of these successes," added Cotterell, pointing out Sun is one of the most tested athletes in the sport.

"You can't have the performances he's had over the years without doing the work. The longevity is what determines the difference between champions and super-champions. He's been tested year in, year out -- hundreds of tests, winning every year over this period of 10 years."
- 'Nothing to hide' -
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"Why would he have given blood in the first place? He wasn't home when they arrived -- he could've just sat in his car and not fronted until it was registered as a miss."
"I've had great support from coaches across the board here in terms of the fact that this is not the place to make their protests. It's unfortunate for a lot of people that their achievements have been overshadowed."
- 'Wrong advice' -
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"That's been a convenient catch cry for a lot of people, but it doesn't show a complete knowledge of what happened."