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At Least Seven Athletes Cut from Chinese Olympic Team for Performance-Enhancing Drug Use

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DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: And now, another story from China. At least 27 of its Olympic athletes apparently will not be going to the games in Sydney. They were cut from the team today.

And, as CNN's John Raedler now tells us, drugs are part of the reason.

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JOHN RAEDLER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The first confirmation that some Chinese athletes would be staying at home came at a press conference in Sydney. International Olympic Committee officials saying China had been conducting new tests on its athletes for the endurance-enhancing drug known as EPO.

PATRICK SCHAMASCH, IOC MEDICAL OFFICER: They've found some athletes above the index, which has been decided and accepted by the executive board of the IOC, and, therefore, the Chinese Olympic Committee has decided not to send these athletes to the games.

RAEDLER: The IOC medical officer added, his information pertained only to seven Chinese rowers.

Later, further confirmation of the withdrawals from the secretary-general of the Chinese Olympic Committee in Beijing.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Indeed, several of our athletes will not attend the Sydney Olympic Games. The reasons are very simple. The first is that, in the course of conducting blood tests, we found suspicious results, suspicious, in several athletes.

RAEDLER: The Chinese official did not say how many athletes had produced the suspicious test results. He said some of those not going to Sydney had been withdrawn from the team because of injury and illness.

(on camera): CNN has learned Chinese officials informed the Australian Olympic Committee that 27 of their athletes would be withdrawn: 14 track and field competitors, seven rowers, four swimmers and two canoeists. But the Chinese communique did not say how many of those withdrawals were related to the tests for EPO.

(voice-over): IOC officials were quick to put a positive spin on this latest drug controversy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a great step forward. I mean, the fact that now anybody who might be inclined to use EPO knows that he or she could be caught increases the chances enormously that they won't do it.

RAEDLER: EPO is said to stimulate production of oxygen-carrying red blood cells, which increase an athlete's endurance. The IOC has approved stringent new tests for EPO at the Sydney Games, which start next week.

John Raedler, CNN, Sydney.

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