{"id":437069,"date":"2020-06-24T05:19:28","date_gmt":"2020-06-24T12:19:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=437069"},"modified":"2020-06-26T02:40:48","modified_gmt":"2020-06-26T09:40:48","slug":"irish-olympic-relay-hopeful-robbie-powell-lands-1-year-ban-after-costly-mistake-leads-to-doping-positive-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/irish-olympic-relay-hopeful-robbie-powell-lands-1-year-ban-after-costly-mistake-leads-to-doping-positive-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Irish Olympic Relay Hopeful Robbie Powell Lands 1-Year Ban After Costly Mistake Leads To Doping Positive"},"content":{"rendered":"

Robbie Powell<\/strong>, a swimmer at the heart of Ireland\u2019s efforts to grant the nation its first Olympic swimming relay, has been suspended for a year after a costly mistake with an eczema medicine led to him testing positive for a banned substance.<\/p>\n

Adjudicators in the anti-doping case ruled that \u201cNo Significant Fault or Negligence\u201d was applicable to Powell, aged 20. He had made a costly mistake when he turned to an alternative remedy to the treatment he usually applies for eczema, a condition that causes inflamed, itchy, red, cracked, and rough skin.<\/p>\n

Powell believed that he had used his usual remedy, which contains no banned substances, but the alternative tube of cream he used to apply a “pea-sized” amount of cream to his skin when he suffered a flare up in November last year contained the steroid Clostebol. The dosage found in the swimmer\u2019s system was negligible but a fraction the wrong side of the \u2018law\u2019. The details are explained in the ruling in full<\/a>.<\/p>\n

After the positive test last November, Powell cooperated fully with the anti-doping authorities. He accepted the adverse finding of the “A” sample, waived his right to have the “B” sample tested and provided investigators comprehensive information about the medication he had taken.<\/p>\n

The summary of the judgement from Sport Ireland includes:<\/p>\n

\u201cSport Ireland was satisfied that the Athlete had established that the violation was not intentional and further that he bore No Significant Fault Or Negligence.\u201d<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Swim Ireland<\/a> and Sport Ireland today jointly announced that Robert Powell \u2013 Robbie Powell \u2013 has committed an anti-doping rule violation and that a one-year penalty would be backdated to the date of the adverse finding,\u00a028th November 2019.<\/p>\n