English Athlete Suspended For Four Years

Robert Myring-Thomson, an athlete registered as a member of Guildford and Godalming Athletics Club, has been suspended from all sport for four years following two Anti-Doping Rule Violations.

Thomson was interviewed by UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) after a package that contained Stanozolol, an anabolic steroid, was intercepted by the Border Force. This package, registered to his home address, was seized in February and contained an estimated quantity of 100 tablets of Stanozolol.

It was ruled by UK Anti-Doping that the British runner who used to boast of an 800 meters personal best of just 2min 8.34sec had committed two Anti-Doping Rule Violations, in reference to the “Attempted Use of a Prohibited Substance” and “Possession of a Prohibited Substance”.

UKAD Director of Operations Pat Myhill remarked this case shows the importance of the work of our Intelligence and Investigations Team and their collaborative efforts with partners such as Border Force. Myhill added we by intercepting this package were able to stop an athlete taking prohibited substances that could also have had negative side effects to his health. The UKAD Director of Operations also remarked that a key part of our anti-doping program is the use of intelligence and information from a wide range of sources. Myhill went on to remark that any information related to doping activity - however small - can make a difference in our fight to protect clean sport.

Thomson would not usually be subjected to drug testing as he is a low-level athlete. He is listed on the running database power of 10 as a distance runner who usually competes over 800 and 1500m. Thomson registered a 1500m best of 4.29.20 and a 10 kilometer road time of [38:37] in 2015 and clocked his 800m best in a Woking Evening Open meeting in August 2015.

Thomson is suspended from "all sport" from February 20, 2017 until February 19, 2021.

Stanozolol is the same drug that triggered positive test of Ben Johnson at the Seoul 1988 Olympic Games. Also known as Winstrol, Stanozolol is generally more associated with power-based sports. The anabolic steroid has been responsible for more doping cases than any other single cause in 2014. Stanozolol accounted for 22 athlete suspensions according to listings compiled by The Anti-Doping Database, compared to 15 attributable to Methylhexaneamine. The 2014 total of Stanozolol-related cases is however the lowest since 2007 and below the year-earlier figure of 132 cases (96 were male and nearly 50 were power lifters or weightlifters; a further 38 were track and field athletes with 25 of them from Turkey). This was the same year in which a doping crisis was faced by Turkey. More than 30 of athletes from the country were suspended on a single August day by the Turkish Athletics Federation.

Few months back, reigning British junior weightlifting champion Adrian Canaveral was banned for four years after failing two drugs tests. Canaveral failed for a metabolite of steroid Stanozolol as well as 19-norandrosterone, Clomiphene, and a metabolite of Tamoxifen following an out-of-competition test. He was also found guilty of testing positive for a banned stimulant Methylhexaneamine.