MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd June, 2021) Russian hurdler Sergey Shubenkov has been cleared in the doping case involving a substance detected in the athlete's sample collected in December last year, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) said on Tuesday.
"The Disciplinary Tribunal found that Sergey Shubenkov of Russia bore No Fault or Negligence for an AntiDoping rule violation resulting from an out-of-competition sample collected by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) on 15 December 2020 - and therefore would serve no period of ineligibility," AIU said in a press release.
It added that the sample collected last year contained acetazolamide, a medication used to treat epilepsy and periodic paralysis among other serious health conditions.
"After a thorough investigation of the athlete's explanation during results management process, the AIU accepted that the positive finding resulted from his unintentional ingestion of residue from medication being used to treat a family member," the statement read.
The Disciplinary Tribunal described the case as "genuinely exceptional" and accepted Shubenkov's plea of no fault.
"Accordingly, no sanction has been imposed," the AIU noted.
The 2015 world champion and 2019 silver medalist in the 110 meters hurdles, Shubenkov was included in the international registered testing pool of seven Russian athletes who were probed for doping this past spring.
In December 2019, the World Anti-Doping Agency labeled the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) as non-compliant with the world anti-doping code and suspended Russian athletes for four years from competing in major international competitions under the national flag, along with imposing a range of other restrictions. RUSADA challenged the decision in the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
