In February 2016 World Rugby has reported an anti-doping rule violation against the Russian rugby player Aleksey Mikhltsov after his sample, provided on 18 January 2016, tested positive for the prohibited substance Meldonium (Mildronate) in a concentration of 25 ng/mL (0.025 μg/ml). After notification a provisional suspension was ordered. The athlete filed a statement in his defence and he was heard for the World Rugby Judicial Committee.
The Athlete admitted the violation and stated that he acted neither intentional or reckless and that had used the substance as prescribed medication on advice of his club doctor until October 2015. Due to Meldonium would be included in the 2016 Prohibited List he used another medication instead of Meldonium.
On 11 April 2016 the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) issued a Notice about Meldonium with guidelines in the circumstances that there may be grounds for no fault or negligence on the part of the Athlete.
The Judicial Committee accepts the Athlete’s explanation and finds that the Athlete established on a balance of probability that the anti-doping violation was neither intentional or reckless. Because the Athlete ceased taking Meldonium in October 2015, it is seriously questionable whether he could have reasonably apprehended there would be minute quantities of the substance in his system after 1 January 2016 and there was a significant risk it might constitute an anti-doping rule violation.
The Committee determines that there was No Fault or Negligence on the Athlete’s part and that the Athlete’s case came within paragraph number 3 of the WADA Notice (Cases where the concentration is below 1 μg/ml and the test was taken before 1 March 2016). As a result the Judicial Committee concludes that there are grounds to reduce the period of ineligibility from 4 to 2 years and also to eliminate this 2 year period of ineligibility.
Therefore the World Rugby Judicial Committee decides on 25 May 2016, and in its final decision of 2 June 2016, that with the elimination of the 2 year period of inelibilibility the Athlete was permitted to resume playing Rugby immediately.
