Veronica Campbell-Brown dodges ban in dope case

A JAMAICAN disciplinary panel has given three-times Olympic gold medalist Veronica Campbell-Brown a public warning and cleared her to return to competition some five months after she returned a positive doping test on the Caribbean island.

Veronica CampbellBrown avoided a ban after a ruling that she didnt take a diuretic to enhance performance. Picture: AFP/Getty

Campbell-Brown, one of the cornerstones of Jamaica’s recent sprinting success, returned a positive test for a banned diuretic at the Jamaica International Invitational meet in May. She was suspended from competition while the disciplinary committee reviewed the case and missed Jamaica’s national championships and couldn’t qualify for this summer’s world championships in Moscow.

In a statement, the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association said its disciplinary committee “recommended that a reprimand without any period of ineligibility would be appropriate.”

It ruled that Campbell-Brown “committed an anti-doping violation” but did not use the banned substance for performance enhancement. The full text of the ruling by a former judge, an attorney and the head of the island’s medical association was not publicly released.

In June, a spokesman for world governing body the International Association of Athletics Federations said the case involving Campbell-Brown appeared to involve a “lesser” offense of unintentional use of a banned substance.

A few weeks after Campbell-Brown’s test, Jamaican sprinting stars Asafa Powell and Sherone Simpson also tested positive for a banned substance and didn’t attend the world championships in Moscow. The incidents shocked many in Jamaica, where global domination in sprinting is a huge source of national pride.

Powell, the former world 100 metre record holder, and Simpson, an Olympic 400-relay silver medalist, are scheduled to appear before a Jamaican disciplinary panel in January.

For Campbell-Brown, the so-called lesser offence meant she could be given a reduced penalty – the public warning or a suspension of a few months to a year rather than the standard two-year ban.

In 2009, Jamaican sprinter Yohan Blake and three compatriots received reduced suspensions of three months after testing positive for a banned stimulant. Under the World Anti-Doping Code, some diuretics are classified as a “specified substance,” drugs that might have been consumed without intent to enhance performance. Athletes can receive a reduced sanction if they can prove how a substance was ingested.

The 31-year-old Campbell-Brown could not immediately be reached for comment. Phone calls and an email to her manager, Claude Bryan, went unanswered.

In June, Bryan issued a statement saying the accusation came as a shock to Campbell-Brown and she was determined to clear her name.

He added that she was apologising to her fans, sponsors and others for any embarrassment or hurt the “devastating news has caused”.

Since then, she has said nothing.

Campbell-Brown has won seven Olympic medals in all, including the 2004 and 2008 Olympic gold medals in the 200m. In addition to her individual Olympic titles, she also won gold in the 4x 100m relay at the 2004 Athens Games. In London, she won bronze in the 100m and silver as part of the 4x 100 relay team.

The disciplinary hearing into her case was held under tight security, with the JAAA declining to disclose where it was being held. The sprinter was represented by PJ Patterson, a former prime minister who led Jamaica from 1992 to 2006 and whose People’s National Party is currently in power.