The doping scandal first went viral when the news broke in late April, then spiralled with back-and-forths between the World Anti-Doping Agency, global athlete-led pressure groups, international media outlets and the United States Anti-Doping officials; and now it seems to have hit its legal stage, as World Aquatics confirmed on Thursday that its top administrator has been ordered to testify as a witness in a US criminal investigation.

Just 21 days before the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, it all seems to fall into another big-picture battle between WADA and USADA over jurisdiction when it comes to policing infractors globally, dating back to a federal law passed by the US government intended to investigate suspected doping conspiracies, even overseas.

After receiving initial multi-federation backing, the Rodchenkov Act has been a point of contention between American authorities, the leading worldwide agency and even the International Olympic Committee. It came to fruition in 2021 as a means to better combat perceived cheaters like Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva, but WADA quickly walked back its original stance, suspecting that a broader political power struggle was in play with certain American interests.

After hearing of Nowicki’s subpoena on Thursday, the global watchdog complained that it had yet to receive any contact or request from US law enforcement. “The public reports about this investigation validate the concerns expressed broadly by the international community about the passage of the Rodchenkov Act, under which the United States purports to exercise extraterritorial criminal jurisdiction over participants in the global anti-doping system,” WADA said in a statement.

The original scandal broke out three months ago but dates back to 2020 and even further, as said Chinese athletes tested positive for the heart drug trimetazidine yet were still allowed to compete in the following Olympics. The New York Times and German broadcaster ARD reported the news back then, quoting USADA’s president, Travis Tygart, saying WADA’s handling of the case could be considered "a potential cover-up". Tensions have gone through the roof since.

“WADA reviewed the Chinese swimmer case file diligently, consulted with scientific and legal experts, and ultimately determined that it was in no position to challenge the contamination scenario, such that an appeal was not warranted. Guided by science and expert consultations, we stand by that good-faith determination in the face of the incomplete and misleading news reports on which this investigation appears to be based”, WADA’s statement continued. 

On Thursday, World Aquatics confirmed Nowicki’s citation to the Associated Press, who did not obtain an answer from World Aquatics on where and when Nowicki was served or which office was handling the investigation. “Per our standard practice, the FBI does not confirm nor deny the existence of an investigation,” the bureau replied via email.

The push for clarity has been constant since The New York Times revealed the positive tests in late April, as has the pushback from WADA and Chinese anti-doping officials who have called the reporting “politically-biased and sensationalist”. The Asian country also went on to select 11 suspect swimmers to participate in the upcoming Olympics a few weeks ago, a decision that worsened the matter, leading up to a US Congressional hearing where swimming icons like Michael Phelps called out the global policing body and politicians demanded answers from the agency supposed to supervise the cheaters.

WADA has long fought back against what it has deemed an overreach from American officials, specifically concerning the Rodchenkov Act, which Tygart, a frequent critic of the global body, considered “was enacted in 2021 with broad athlete, sport and multinational governmental support because WADA could not be trusted to be a strong, fair global watchdog to protect clean athletes and fair sport.”

As the case keeps evolving with no end in sight and Paris 2024 nearing, anti-doping expert April Henning, from Edinburgh's Heriot-Watt University, recently told AFP that “there are no winners” in this scandal, which his not only affecting the agency but other athletes and governing bodies including "the Chinese swimmers who will now forever be labelled as dopers even if there truly was a contamination issue."