St. John's runner banned from competition after failing drug test
A St. John's runner is appealing a sanction handed down by the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport after failing to pass a drug test following a race in May.
David Freake said he was banned from competition for four years after he took oral nasal decongestants.
Freake said he was approached by a doping control officer after dropping out of a race in Ottawa due to an injury. He said he told the officer he had taken some medication but didn't knowingly take anything banned, he told CBC.
"I believe in a clean sport and love competing. I respect the CCES [Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport] and all that they do," Freake said in an email to CBC News.
"I hope to appeal the ruling and continue to run as it's something I truly love to do."
Freake said he was alerted last Friday about the sanction.
In September, Freake took seven minutes off the course record of a half-marathon in Nova Scotia. In May, he won the Toronto marathon with a time of 02:33:57.
The Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport would not comment on the decision.
However, according to their website, the Canadian Anti-Doping Program "provides for a large degree of flexibility to decrease or increase the sanction depending on the unique facts of each case and the results of evidence-based tests."
For the presence, use or possession of a banned substance, the site states, a runner will be ineligible for either two or four years on a first offence.
CBC News has asked the Newfoundland and Labrador Athletic Association for comment.
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