Triathlete Julie Rosiek Accepts Anti-Doping Sanctions for Prescribed Drug – New Crackdowns May Be Coming
Quick Summary: The US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) has just announced that US triathlete Julie Rosiek has accepted a 2-year sanction for failing to secure a Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) for a doctor-prescribed anabolic steroid. Without a TUE, this class of substances, and their metabolites are
Quick Summary: The US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) has just announced that US triathlete Julie Rosiek has accepted a 2-year sanction for failing to secure a Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) for a doctor-prescribed anabolic steroid. Without a TUE, this class of substances, and their metabolites are banned because of their potential performance-enhancing effects. Rosiek tested positive during a November 10th event. She is banned from the sport for two years, and her race results were disqualified.
Further reading: Triathlete Lisa Roberts Gets Warning by US Anti-Doping Agency – How This May Affect You
USADA also announced that a doctor’s prescription alone does not constitute proof of therapeutic use.
Why this is important: Anti-doping authorities have been lenient in recent doping cases in which triathletes failed to secure TUE’s for prescribed inhaler medicines. US triathlete Lisa Roberts received a warning from USADA in November after she failed a drug test at CHALLENGE ROTH and produced a prescription. She lost her medal despite obtaining a TUE later.
An International Triathlon Union (ITU) and International Olympic Committee (IOC) investigation cleared South African Olympic triathlete Henri Schoeman of wrongdoing for a similar violation with a prednisolone inhaler. In his case, the missing TUE could have been a bureaucratic failure. He held onto his bronze medal from the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics.
After the Roberts case, USADA and WADA created instructional updates about obtaining a TUE for inhaler drugs. Both clearly issue warnings as well.
Expect stricter enforcement of anti-doping rules: It looks like anti-doping agencies now mean business. The Rosiek case may be an indicator that the agencies will be less lenient from now on. It’s probably best to expect stricter enforcement from here onward. Before joining a triathlon, read the web pages below.
