On May 2012 the International Skating Union (ISU) has reported an anti-doping rule violation against the Russian Athlete Pavel Kulizhnikov after his sample tested positive for the prohibited substance methylhexaneamine. After notification the Athlete filed a statement in his defence.
The Athlete submitted that due to a cold with fever he used a herbal medicine Umkalor for the treatment of his respiratory disease and he checked the ingredients of the product before using. The Athlete stated that he stopped using the medicine a few day before arriving in Japan on 21 February 2012.
The Athlete asserted that the positive test result could have been caused only by Umkalor because it contained the ingredient “pelagonium sidoides”, the Latin name for geranium (methylhexaneamine). However the Montreal laboratorium reported that “pelargonium sidoides” in the Umkalor is not known to contain the substance methylhexaneamine.
In addition the Tokyo laboratory reported that the concentration methylhexaneamine found in the Athletes sample cannot be explained by the use of Umkalor. With Umkalor excluded as the source of the prohibited substance, the ISU requested the Russian team physician for a detailed list of the nutritional supplements and drugs provided to the Athlete from 21 February to 4 March 2012. Nevertheless none of the products on the list could explain the positive test result.
Therefore the ISU Disciplinary Commission concludes that the Athlete could not establish how the prohibited substance entered his body and that there are no grounds for exceptional circumstances.
Therefore the ISU Discilinary Commission decides 31 August 2012 to impose a 2 year period of ineligibility on the Athlete, starting on the date of the sample collection, i.e. on 4 March 2012.
