Czech Republic Para ice hockey player suspended for anti-doping violation

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has announced that Czech Republic Para ice hockey player Martin Novak has been suspended for six months for an Anti-Doping Rule Violation.

Novak returned an adverse analytical finding for indapamide in a urine sample provided on 3 December 2016 after he had competed in a match at the 2016 IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championships B-Pool in Tomakomai, Japan.

This substance is included on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) 2016 Prohibited List under the category S5. Diuretics and Masking Agents and is prohibited at all times, both in and out of competition.

As a result of his violation, Novak will be ineligible from competition for six months from 20 January 2017, the date he was provisionally suspended, until 19 July 2017.

All Novak’s results obtained from the date of the test and onwards will be disqualified including forfeiture of any medals, points, records and prizes. There is no impact on the team result.

The principle of strict liability applies to anti-doping matters. Therefore, each athlete is strictly liable for the substances found in his or her sample, and that an anti-doping rule violation occurs whenever a prohibited substance (or its metabolites or markers) is found in his or her bodily specimen, whether or not the athlete intentionally or unintentionally used a prohibited substance or was negligent or otherwise at fault.

As a signatory of the World Anti-Doping Code (WADC), the IPC remains committed to a doping free sporting environment at all levels. The IPC, together with the International Federations and the National Paralympic Committees, established the IPC Anti-Doping Code to prevent doping in sport for Paralympic athletes, in the spirit of fair play. The IPC Anti-Doping Code is in conformity with the general principles of the WADC.