Barbara again deceived the system.
The actions of officials of the World Anti-Doping Agency are looking more and more like absurdity. Notorious American dopingists, caught by the hand, get off with a slight fright thanks to lawyers, and innocent Russians have been unable to enter competitions under their own flag for years.
But the case of the American tennis player is striking in the level of impudence.
For the second time, an athlete is forgiven for doping!
“I have always followed the anti-doping rules”
The doping story of American tennis player Varvara Lepchenko, who played for Uzbekistan until 2007, is reminiscent of a detective story about unsuccessful detectives who can’t catch a malicious criminal in any way, although all the evidence has long been on hand.
In 2016, Lepchenko became a participant in a doping scandal. She was caught using meldonium. Then many athletes from the post-Soviet space faced similar problems. Dozens of Russians were disqualified. Indicative for tennis was the removal of Maria Sharapova, who was not helped even by an ideal reputation. It seemed that the American would not escape severe punishment, but WADA took her word for it.
“I have always followed the WADA, ITF and WTA anti-doping rules. I was prescribed meldonium for a short period of time, which I immediately stopped in December after it became known that it was included in the banned list from January 1, 2016.
Although I tested positive for meldonium in early January, I had stopped taking the drug a few weeks before. But traces remained in the body. I would like to thank my team and consultants who worked with the ITF to show that the timing of the elimination of meldonium from the body varies from person to person,” Lepchenko said.
This statement was enough for the tennis player to calmly continue to play in the WTA and ITF tournaments, while Sharapova was serving a 15-month suspension.
“She is looking forward to returning to the WTA”
The doping story of Lepchenko received a continuation in 2021. This time, a metabolite of modafinil was found in the blood of the athletes. In the US, the free sale of this drug is prohibited. It is available by prescription to combat drowsiness. In Russia, modafinil is considered a psychotropic drug, and its use is punishable by a prison term.
From the moment the sample was taken to the publication of the result, Varvara also managed to win the ITF tournament in Charleston. His results, of course, were annulled. It would seem that this time to avoid severe punishment will not work. The drug has been banned since 2003, when Lepchenko was still taking her first steps in her professional career. Harsh assumptions were initially confirmed: Varvara received a four-year disqualification.
But even in this almost hopeless situation, the American was able to get out. The side of the tennis player said that the drug got into her blood by accident, through dietary supplements. Moreover, the absurdity of the line of defense is simply amazing. It turns out that after the verdict, Lepchenko purely by chance discovered in her purse the dietary supplement that she bought a year before the disqualification … in Ukraine.
Luckily, one of the jars turned out to be closed, and it was sent for examination to a laboratory accredited by WADA. During the test, luck was again on the side of the athlete. The experts found modafinil in the dietary supplement, although it was not listed on the package.
With the results of the study, Lepchenko appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne (CAS). The judges sided with the athlete and reduced the period of disqualification to 21 months as part of a settlement agreement with the ITF. WADA also did not challenge the decision by signing a settlement agreement.
Barbara is relieved that during the long investigation she was able to prove that the positive result of the test was caused by a contaminated dietary supplement. She is looking forward to returning to the WTA Tour in May,” Lepchenko’s lawyer quotes The Associated Press.
Now the tennis player, twice caught doping, nothing prevents her from returning to the tennis courts in three months.
