Nigerian powerlifter suspended after Anti-Doping Rule Violation

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 International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has announced that the Nigerian Powerlifter Folashade Oluwafemiayo has been suspended for two years for an Anti-Doping Rule Violation.

Oluwafemiayo returned an adverse analytical finding for Furosemide in a urine sample provided on 26 February 2013 after competing at the 5th Fazaa International Powerlifting Competition in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates.

This substance is included on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) 2013 Prohibited List under the category S5 Diuretics and Masking Agents and is considered a “specified substance”. Consequently it is prohibited under the IPC Anti-Doping Code.

In accordance with the IPC Anti-Doping Code, Folashade Oluwafemiayo will serve a two year suspension for the offence beginning on 19 April 2013; the date from which she was notified of her Anti-Doping Rule Violation. All results obtained from 26 February 2013, the date of the test and onwards, will be disqualified with all the resulting consequences including forfeiture of any medals, points, records and prizes.

This includes her result in the women’s up to 79kg category at the 5th Fazaa International Powerlifting Competition. In that event Oluwafemiayo won gold with a world record lift of 125kg.

As a result Egypt’s Geehan Hassan, who originally won silver with a lift of 117kg, will receive gold, Poland’s bronze medallist Marzena Lazarz 97kg) will take silver and Libya’s Sahar El-Gnemi (90kg) who finished fourth will be awarded the bronze medal.

A financial sanction of 1,500 Euros was also imposed on the athlete.

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.