The gold medal hanging around her neck Monday night was evidence enough of that.
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She won her second silver of the Olympics on Thursday night, her first coming in the infamous 100-meter breaststroke race in which King won gold the day after wagging her finger at Efimova and calling her a cheater. But on the other hand, Efimova is legitimately allowed to be competing.
King told USA Today that the feud began when she waggled one index finger after qualifying for the semifinal in the 100-meter breaststroke.
Yulia Efimova is firing back at competitors who criticized her role in the Russian doping scandal. On national TV she explained what she was thinking – and she did it in no uncertain words.
King’s forthright comments earlier in the week raised tensions between the United States and Russian teams further, with the Russian swimming head, Vladimir Salnikov, saying the atmosphere reminded him of the cold war. “I’m just not a fan”, King said.
After winning silver in the 200m breaststroke, the 24-year-old Russian said: “What would she say about Michael Phelps?”. Asked if she had made a statement with her victory, King said: “I hope I did”.
Efimova was the target of King’s verbal jabs this week as the American proposed the Russian should be punished with a lifetime ban. Usually at an Olympic Games all wars stop but now they can find a way to beat Russian Federation and to use athletes.
Yet there she was in the pool, trying desperately to overcome King’s early lead.
But Americans were involved in the doping controversy as well, Tracy reports, and when asked if USA track stars Justin Gatlin and Tyson Gay, both of whom were previously banned for drug offenses, should be allowed to compete, Lilly King said no.
U.S. swimmer Lilly King today declared her defeat of Russian rival Yulia Efimova as a victory for athletes who did not take drugs.
King didn’t think that was right.
“I think you’re going to probably see a lot of people speaking out more”, Phelps said. She was also asked about her thoughts on Justin Gatlin, a US sprinter who has served two doping bans, and said, “Do I think someone who has been caught for doping should be on the team?” “It was so incredible, winning a gold medal and knowing I did it clean”, she later pronounced after her victory. I bet she could’ve run a presidential campaign and convinced people to write her, a 19-year-old from IN, onto the ballot IN November.
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King apparently could not stop there, and later added: “If that’s what she feels she needs to be able to compete, whatever, that’s her deal”.
