1994 World Champion, Lu Bin from China made a successful return to competition after serving a two-year drug ban. Lu was one of seven Chinese swimmers who tested positive at the 1994 Asian Games.
At the World Cup 5 in Glasgow, Great Britain, she celebrated victory in her first appearance in Europe since her tainted triumphs at 1994 World Championships in Rome. Lu won the 50m backstroke in 28.74; holding off France’s Anne-Francoise Glatre in Glasgow’s new Tollcross Park pool.
Lu took the world by storm at 1994 World Championships as a 17-year-old, winning the 200 IM. She won gold on two Chinese relays and also won silvers in the 100m and 200m freestyle.
At the Asian Games a month later, she destroyed the 200 IM world record but the time was disallowed after the positve drug test. She has always denied taking drugs and suggests her sample might have been tampered with. Lu was one of three Chinese winners on the first day of the two-day meeting, fifth leg of the World Cup.
Liu Limin, 100m butterfly silver medalist at the 1996 Olympic Games, swam the second-fastest time in the world this season to win the the 100m butterfly in 58.42. Only Misty Hyman’s world record was faster. Teammate Han Xue won the 100m breaststroke, but Chao Na was nipped by former East German Katrin Meissner in the 50m freestyle.
Australia shined again, with Michael Klim repeating the double he achieved in Malmo by winning the 100m freestyle and 50m butterfly. Klim repeated won the 100 freestyle in 48.86 and finished strongly in the 50m butterfly to defeat Britain’s Mark Foster (the current world record holder in the event) in a time of 23.92.
Fourteen-year-old Australian Natasha Bowron won the 200m and 800m freestyle. Adrian Radley won the 100m backstroke, while and Matthew Dunn took the 400 IM.