Belgian Cycling Federation recommends two-year ban for Roel Paulissen
Former Marathon World Champion Roel Paulissen is looking for some solace in the recent announcement by UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) that contaminated supplements are responsible for many recent false positives. However, the Belgian Cycling Federation is still pushing
for a 24-month suspension and an 87,500 Euro fine for the cyclist after twice testing positive in June for clomiphene. The decision will be made on November 22.
“There is a risk that supplements could contain ... prohibited substances, even if the ingredients listed on the label do not appear on the World Anti-Doping Code’s Prohibited List,” read a warning released by the UKAD. “This is because some prohibited substances
are referred to on supplement labelling by different names.”
Clomiphene is a female hormone which used to be commonly used to cover up the use of male anabolic steroids, but the substance is now easily detectable and remains in the user’s system for much longer than many alternatives. The 34-year-old cyclist tested
positive on June 6 and June 19 of this year, but explained that he had been taking a supplement that has been discovered to be contaminated.
"It is allowed for there to be a certain degree of contamination in supplements by the Belgian and European laws. There are producers who can easily get away with it," said Paulissen to Sporza. "For an athlete though, that could mean the end of his career.
I feel a bit like Alberto Contador, who is trying to demonstrate that a positive came through contaminated meat."
The cyclist announced his retirement from the sport when the positive tests were announced, though he has been stressing his innocence since.
"Clomiphene is detectable. For me, it was found for the first time on June 6th, and then again, nearly two weeks later. If I wanted to dope, wouldn't I take a product that stays in my body for a much shorter period of time?"
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