Tribunal will ban Johaug for 14 months

The tribunal Anti-Doping Norway is recommending that  Therese Johaug should be banned for 14 months. Johaug will thus miss the Lahti World Championships in February, but be all right for the Olympics in 2018.

The exclusion will apply from 18 October this year, the tribunal said in a statement. The recommendations were published early Tuesday afternoon. The Commission has laid down the following assertions;

“Therese Johaug is sentenced to lose the right to participate in competitions and organized training, and the right to be an elected or appointed officer for a period of 14 – fourteen – months, with effect from the imposed suspension date of 10.18.2016.”

If Johaug is excluded for 14 months with effect from September, she will manage next year’s start of the season and the 2018 Olympics. The Olympics in Pyeongchang starts in February 2018.

Now the adjudication  Confederation committee will judge the cross-country star. When the prosecution petition reaches them, the athlete gets three weeks to comment. Then, an oral hearing will be scheduled by the adjudication committee.

Tested positive

Therese Johaug tested positive for doping September 16, but has not admitted any wrongdoing.

Former national team doctor Fredrik S. Bendiksen has however taken on all the blame in the matter. 28 years old Johaug had ingested the banned substance clostebol, allegedly after using the cream Trofodermin, which she used to treat a sunburn lip.

Johaug is glad to be believed

I am pleased that the prosecution committee believe what I have said. But I do not understand that what has happened can give rise to 14-month ban, says Therese Johaug about the prosecuting tribunal’s decision.

Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today

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