FEI Tribunal issues Final Decisions in equine and human anti-doping cases

The FEI Tribunal has issued its Final Decisions in a number of equine and human anti-doping cases.  

This first case involves an adverse analytical finding for the prohibited substance Clenbuterol, a “Non-Specified Substance” listed in Class S1.2, Other Anabolic Agents, under the 2019 WADA Prohibited List. It is prohibited at all times, in-and out of competition.

A sample taken on 4 June 2019, out-of-competition, from the Mexican athlete Abraham Gaspar Ojeda Serrano (FEI ID 10012274/MEX) returned positive for Clenbuterol. The athlete was notified of the violation of the FEI’s Anti-Doping Rules for Human Athletes (ADRHA) on 2 April 2020 and was provisionally suspended.

The athlete established, on a balance of probabilities that the prohibited substance entered his body through the ingestion of meat contaminated with Clenbuterol. He had visited several restaurants and food stands where he consumed a significant amount of meat, despite being aware of the risk of contamination in the region. Therefore, the FEI Tribunal ruled that the athlete bore no significant fault or negligence.

In its Final Decision, the FEI Tribunal ruled that the athlete is suspended for a period of 16 months, starting from the date of the FEI Tribunal Final Decision (30 June 2021). The Provisional Suspension served by the Athlete as of 2 April 2020 shall be credited against the imposed ineligibility period, meaning, the Athlete is suspended until 1 August 2021.

Additionally, the athlete has been fined CHF 3,000.

The parties can appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) within 21 days of receipt of the decision.

The full text of the FEI Tribunal’s Final Decision is available here.

 

The second case involves the horse Blue Diamond (FEI ID 106HE36/JOR), ridden by Fahad Alkharmani (FEI ID 100725647KSA) and trained by Anas Al Saied (FEI ID 10185797/JOR). Samples taken from the horse at the CEI2* 120 – Wadi Rum (JOR) on 14 November 2019 tested positive for the Banned Substance Diisopropylamine.

Both the athlete and the trainer of the horse were unable to give any plausible explanation for the presence of the Prohibited Substance in the horse’s sample.

In its Final Decision, the FEI Tribunal imposed a two-year Period of Ineligibility on the athlete and the trainer. The Provisional Suspension, which came into effect on 13 January 2020, is credited against the Period of Ineligibility imposed in the decision, meaning both the athlete and trainer will be ineligible until 12 January 2022. Each were was also fined CHF 7,500 and asked to each pay costs of CHF 2,000.

The parties can appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) within 21 days of receipt of the decision.

The full text of the FEI Tribunal’s Final Decision is available here.

Notes to Editors:

FEI Clean Sport - human athletes

The FEI is part of the collaborative worldwide movement for doping-free sport led by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). The aim of this movement is to protect fair competition as well as athlete health and welfare.

WADA’s Prohibited List identifies the substances and methods prohibited in- and out-of-competition, and in particular sports. The substances and methods on the List are classified by different categories (e.g., steroids, stimulants, gene doping).

As a WADA Code Signatory, the FEI runs a testing programme for human athletes based on WADA’s List of Prohibited List of Substances and Methods and on the Code-compliant FEI Anti-Doping Rules for Human Athletes (ADRHA).

For further information, please consult the Clean Sport section of the FEI website here.

FEI Equine Prohibited Substances

The FEI Prohibited Substances List is divided into two sections: Controlled Medication and *Banned Substances. Controlled Medication substances are medications that are regularly used to treat horses, but which must have been cleared from the horse’s system by the time of competition. Banned (doping) Substances should never be found in the body of the horse and are prohibited at all times.

In the case of an adverse analytical finding (AAF) for a Banned Substance, the Person Responsible (PR) is automatically provisionally suspended from the date of notification (with the exception of certain cases involving a Prohibited Substance which is also a **Specified Substance). The horse is provisionally suspended for two months.

Information on all substances is available on the searchable FEI Equine Prohibited Substances Database.