In March 2020 the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) of World Athletics reported an anti-doping rule violation against the Bahrain Athlete Hassan Chani after an AIU Expert Panel concluded unanimously in January 2020 in their Joint Expert Opinion that the Athlete’s hematological profile “highly likely” showed that he used a prohibited substance or a prohibited method: the use of EPO or Blood doping.
This conclusion of the AIU Expert Panel was based on assessment of blood samples, collected in the period from 11 August 2016 until 4 October 2019 reported in the Athlete’s Biological Passport (ABP).
After notification the Athlete submitted an explanation to the AIU about the circumstances surrounding the collected samples. However after consideration the Expert Panel rejected the Athlete’s explanations in March 2020 in their second joint report. A provisional suspension was ordered and the Athlete was heard for the World Athletics Disciplinary Tribunal.
The AIU contended that the Athlete’s ABP profile constitutes reliable evidence of blood doping and accordingly that the Athlete committed an anti-doping rule violation under the Rules. The Athlete denied the violation, disputed the reliablility of the ABP and asserted that the values in his ABP could be explained as a result of high altitude and his training regime.
Based on the evidence the Panel deems that Athlete’s ABP is highly abnormal and none of the Athlete's explanations or allegations can refute that conclusion. The Panel is comfortably satisfied that the doping scenario presented by the AIU and the Expert Panel caused the abnormalities in the Athlete’s ABP and that the Athlete committed an anti-doping rule violation.
Therefore on 10 September 2020 the Disciplinary Tribunal decides to impose a 4 year period of ineligibility on the Athlete starting on the date of the provisional suspension, i.e. on 16 March 2020.