Is tainted meat really to blame for positive Clenbuterol tests?

Five soccer players from the Mexican National team were suspended from the recently completed Gold Cup Soccer tournament after testing positive for Clenbuterol. The players claimed the source of the Clenbuterol was tainted meat they had eaten.

It is the same claim being made by Alberto Contador, the three-time Tour de France champion, who will begin his quest for a fourth Tour de France crown next week with a cloud of suspicion hanging over him. Contador has maintained all along that the source of the Clenbuterol he tested positive for at last year’s Tour was tainted meat. Contador was exonerated by the Spanish Federation, who believed his story, and said that he should not be sanctioned under the World Anti-Doping Code since he bore no fault or negligence for eating tainted meat. The World Anti-Doping Agency appealed the Contador ruling and a hearing at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland is expected to take place this fall to resolve Contador’s case.

There have been several other Clenbuterol/tainted meat cases internationally in the past year that would seem to lend credence to the stories being told by both the Mexican soccer players and Contador. In each case, trace amounts of Clenbuterol were found in the athlete’s urine sample, and the athlete claimed the source was tainted meat.

Farmers in many countries (including Mexico and Spain) apparently use Clenbuterol illegally to make livestock leaner and more valuable as a source of meat. The Clenbuterol remains in the cow’s system in trace amounts even after it is slaughtered.

Should athletes be expected to refrain from eating meat? At the recent Tackling Doping in Sport Conference which I attended in London, more than one hundred of the world’s top authorities on the topic were asked that question, and no one believed that an elite athlete should be forced to refrain from eating meat for fear that they might test positive for Clenbuterol. It seemed like too high a burden for athletes to bear.

But as Contador vies for another Tour de France crown, both his status and the issue of tainted meat in sports will remain unresolved for the time being.

Olympic Gold-Medalist LaShawn Merritt cleared to compete at World Championships; Ruling on Olympic eligibility for London 2012 awaits.

American Track & Field star LaShawn Merritt, the reigning Olympic and World Championship gold medalist in the 400 meters is nearing the end of a 20 month ban from competition that resulted after he took a banned substance contained in a drug named Extenze, designed to enhance sexual performance.

Merritt’s case has received international attention because it has led to a formal challenge of the International Olympic Committee rule that bans all athletes with doping suspensions of more than six months from competing in the next Olympic Games. The IOC rule known as either “the Unpublished memo” or “Rule 45” and whether it’s application to Merritt is violating the IOC’s duties under the World Anti-Doping Code will be the subject of an arbitration upcoming this fall before the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland.

In the meantime, Merritt was given clearance this week to compete in the World Track & Field Championships in Daegu, South Korea by USA Track & Field. Merritt needed a waiver from USA Track & Field to defend his world championship in the 400 meters since his suspension prevented him from competing in the US Nationals, held last week in Eugene, Oregon, the qualifier for the Worlds. Merritt’s suspension ends in late July.

Vobora Wins Civil Suit

St. Louis Rams linebacker, David Vobora, won 5.4 million dollars in his federal law suit against Anti-Steroid Program LLC, a supplement manufacturer in Florida.

Vobora was suspended from the NFL in 2009 after he failed a drug test. Vobora said he used a product made by Anti-Steroid Program called "Ultimate Sports Spray" in June 2009. The product, when tested by an independent lab in the law suit, was discovered to contain methyltestosterone, a banned substance.

The NFL employs a 'strict liability' policy with its players, similar to that utilized by the World Anti-Doping Agency. Though Vobora was held responsible for his positive test by the NFL, the outcome of the law suit supports his contention that he was not intentionally trying to cheat by using the substance. Since his positive test, the NFL has taken affirmative steps to ensure other players and coaches have disassociated with Anti-Steroid Program, LLC.

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