Adam Peaty’s rival for 100m breaststroke gold has claimed there is a "European and American" plot against China's swimming team.
Qin Haiyang was among 23 Chinese athletes to test positive for the banned substance trimetazidine but the athletes were cleared by doping officials because of contamination from the hotel where they were staying.
Eleven of those athletes are competing in the Paris Olympics, including Qin, who accused his and the Chinese team's detractors of slander.
Qin, the world record holder for the 200m breaststroke but doubling up over the shorter distance, is seen as Peaty's biggest threat to winning a hat-trick of individual titles.
He said: "This proves that the European and American teams feel threatened by the performances of the Chinese team in recent years.
"Some tricks aim to disrupt our preparation rhythm and destroy our psychological defence! But we are not afraid.
"When you have a clear conscience, you do not fear slander. The team is currently preparing at the established pace. My team-mates and I will resist the pressure and win more medals to silence the sceptics."
His comments come after a member of the Chinese team claimed in a social media post that their athletes had been tested on average five to seven times while in Paris.
Team nutritionist Yu Liang wrote in a post, which was later deleted: "The tests come early in the morning before we're even awake, during midday rest periods, forcing us to rest on hotel lobby sofas, and even late at night, keeping us up past midnight."
