A black-market steroid operation run by fitness trainers has left over 2,000 gym-goers across China with severe side effects, including two men who suffered permanent infertility, prosecutors in Jiangsu province have revealed.
The case came to light in May 2021 when a Lu surnamed fitness coach in Taizhou reported to police that he had lost sexual function after taking a “miracle drug” called “OP” to enhance his competition performance. He also suffered insomnia and fever.
Police traced the operation to a group of six fitness trainers led by a man surnamed Zhu. Since 2021, they had purchased raw steroid materials and basic equipment, producing the drug in a rented bungalow through repeated trial and error. They developed oral and injectable versions of “OP” and recruited 16 other fitness trainers as distributors.
The network sold the drugs to more than 2,000 fitness enthusiasts across over ten provinces. Users experienced rapid muscle growth that helped them place higher in bodybuilding competitions, allowing them to charge significantly more for coaching – from a few thousand yuan to tens of thousands.
The criminal gang generated over 6 million yuan in sales and profited more than 1 million yuan. Investigators found that two trainers involved, both around 20 years old, had suffered complete and permanent infertility due to their own drug use.
Testing by the China Anti-Doping Agency confirmed the drugs contained banned substances and had no pharmaceutical approval numbers.
In March 2025, the court sentenced the six principal offenders to prison terms ranging from four and a half years to suspended sentences for illegal business operations. They were also ordered to cover the costs of safely disposing of 122 kilograms of seized drugs. An additional 25 fitness trainers received administrative penalties barring them from pharmaceutical production and sales for life.
