Swimming greats Michael Phelps and Allison Schmitt to testify to Congress about anti-doping challenges at Olympics

WASHINGTON — Former Olympian swimming greats Michael Phelps and Allison Schmitt will testify in prime time next week on Capitol Hill on the need for strong anti-doping measures in the upcoming Paris Olympic games, NBC News has learned.

The hearing, hosted by a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee and titled “Examining Anti-Doping Measures in Advance of the 2024 Olympics,” comes amid an outcry in the swimming community over a New York Times report that 23 Chinese swimmers had tested positive for a banned heart medication months before the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.

The athletes were cleared to compete after Chinese officials concluded the positive tests were the result of contamination, and the world’s top anti-doping regulator chose not to intervene. Several who tested positive won medals in Tokyo, and some of those swimmers are expected to compete in Paris.

The public hearing is set for 7 p.m. on June 25.

“Olympic athletes dedicate years of their lives to perfect their craft in order to represent the United States on the world stage. They — as well as athletes from every other country — deserve to compete on a level playing field that’s free of banned performance enhancing drugs,”Energy and Commerce Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., and Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Va., chair of the committee's Oversight and Investigations subcommittee, said in a joint statement.

“The World Anti-Doping Agency, the governing body responsible for enforcing fair standards, has a questionable track record of fulfilling that mission,” the lawmakers added. “This hearing will give Members a chance to examine that track record, identify opportunities for improvement, and ensure that the best athletes are the ones taking home gold medals.”

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