Related case:
TJD-AD 2023-003 Disciplinary Decision - Basketball
August 3, 2023
On 3 August 2023 the Brazilian Sports Justice Anti-Doping Tribunal (TJD-AD) decided to impose a 2 year period of ineligibility on the basketball player after he tested positive for the prohibited substance Cannabis.
Although in first instance the violation was deemed not intentional, the Athlete made no admission and did not accept a provisional suspension. He also failed to demonstrate with evidence that the use of Cannabis occurred out-of-competition.
Hereafter the Athlete appealed the Decision with the TJD-AD Appeal Panel. He requested the Appeal Panel to set aside the Appealed Decision and to impose a reduced sanction, starting on the date of the sample collection.
This time the Athlete admitted the violation and explained that he had used Cannabis for health reasons. With evidence he attempted to demonstrate that he had used the substance out-of-competition in a context unrelated to sport performance.
Considering the evidence in this case the Rapporteur accepts that the violation was not intentional and that the substance was not used in a context to sport performance. However in view of the Athlete's conduct the Rapporteur deems that there are insufficient grounds to reduce the imposed sanction.
Nevertheless the Rapporteur determines that indeed there had been delays in the proceedings not attributed to the Athlete. Consequently this justifies the modification of the starting date of the sanction.
Therefore the TJD-AD Appeal Panel decides on 4 October 2023 to uphold the Appealed Decision and the imposition of a 2 year period of ineligibility. The Appeal Panel decides to modify the starting date of the sanction to be set on the date of the sample collection, i.e. on 17 January 2023.
