The four-month ban on Ethiopian Gudaf Tsegay after a positive test out of competition is causing talk in the athletic world. The double world champion whistled during an anti-doping control in December last year due to a metabolite of letrozole.which is a potent inhibitor of the enzyme that converts testosterone to estrogen. In other words, it is primarily used to mask the use of performance-enhancing substances.
The Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) announced today that the athlete has received a ban of just four months that was based on the Tsegay’s degree of guilt, his prompt admission of the offence, the fact that the presence of letrozole met WADA’s international standards for Therapeutic Use Exemptions (TUEs) and the recognition that would have been granted if he had requested it in advance.
As an athlete, I believe that we should all be judged by the same criteria and that sanctions should be consistent and proportional.
An explanation that certainly does not convince everyone, according to Mohamed Katir’s recent publication. As will be remembered, The Spanish athlete is banned for four years for intentionally manipulating several travel documents to avoid an initial two-year penalty for three location failures.
Katir can return to racing in competition on February 6, 2028 and has already announced that His great goal is to participate in the Los Angeles Olympic Games of that year. That is why it is not surprising that athletic news continues, as he has demonstrated with his harsh statement today.
A writing in which he complains about a clear double standard: “I respect all the decisions of sports organizations but I cannot hide my surprise and indignation when seeing certain differences in the sanctions that apply within athletics“.
Athletes, fans and everyone working for clean athletics deserve a system that builds trust and treats everyone equally
“In my case, I received a four-year sanction for a human error and an oversight that I assumed from the first moment. “This sanction has had a huge impact on my career, my image and my personal life,” continues the Murcian athlete.
“That’s why, I find it difficult to understand how other cases related to doping can receive much lower sanctions. As an athlete, I believe that we should all be judged by the same criteria and that sanctions should be coherent and proportional,” says the double world medalist.
“I do not speak from resentment, but from the need to defend equality and justice in our sport. “Athletes, fans and everyone who works for clean athletics deserve a system that builds trust and treats everyone equally,” Mo claims.
“I will continue respecting the rules and working to compete again, but I will also continue to defend what I consider fair, @aiu_athletics. It’s unfair,” concludes the Spanish athlete.
