In June 2022 United Kingdom Anti-Doping (UKAD) reported an anti-doping rule violation against the rugby player Ashleigh Hyndman after his A and B samples tested positive for the prohibited substance GW1516.
Following notification a provisional suspension was ordered. The Athlete filed a statement in his defence and he was heard for the National Anti-Doping Panel.
In this case there had been delays in the proceedings due to the extentions requested by the Athlete in order to obtain corroborating evidence for his defence.
Ultimately the Athlete admitted the violation and denied the intentional use of the substance. Supported by expert witnesses and evidence he asserted that a contaminated supplement was the source of the positive test results.
The Athlete had tested his supplement in question in a laboratory and analysis revealed the presence of GW1516 contaminants in a open package. Yet, no contaminants were detected in the sealed packages of this supplement.
The Athlete asserted that the concentration of the substance found in his supplement was consistent with contamination and inconsistent with deliberate sabotage. On the other hand UKAD's expert witness did not exclude the possibility of contamination in the manufacturing process but was neutral as to when it had occurred.
UKAD contended that the Athlete's violation was intentional and that he failed to establish the source of the prohibited substance.
The Panel assessed and addressed the evidence provided by the Parties and their expert witnesses. As a result the Panel was unable to be satisfied that the Athlete had established, to the standard required, the source of the substance he had ingested, nor that the violation was not intentional.
Nevertheless the Panel deems that the Athlete had been a credible witness, neither was he deemed to be a cheater. Further the Panel determines that delays in the proceedings had plainly impacted him in a very adverse way.
Therefore the Panel decides on 17 May 2023 to impose a 4 year period of inelgibility on the Athlete, starting on the date of the provisional suspension, i.e. on 10 June 2022.
