Polish shooter suspended after Anti-Doping Rule Violation

Germany, July 15, 2013: The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has announced that the Polish shooter Slawomir Okoniewski has been suspended for three months for an Anti-Doping Rule Violation.

Okoniewski returned an adverse analytical finding for Hydrochlorothiazide and Chlorothiazide in a urine sample provided on 19 April 2013 after competing at an IPC Shooting World Cup event in Szczecin, Poland.

This substance is included on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) 2013 Prohibited List under the category S5 Diuretics and Masking Agents and is considered a “specified substance”.

Consequently it is prohibited under the IPC Anti-Doping Code.

Okoniewski exercised his right to a hearing during which he provided corroborating evidence to explain how the substance had entered his body. The hearing panel who heard Okoniewski’s case was satisfied that he did not take the substance to enhance his performance or mask the use of a performance enhancing substance.

In accordance with the IPC Anti-Doping Code a suspension of three months and no financial sanction was imposed on Okoniewski. All his results obtained at the competition on 19 April 2013 will be disqualified with all the resulting consequences including forfeiture of any medals, points and prizes.

The principle of strict liability applies to anti-doping matters. Therefore, each athlete is strictly liable for the substances found in his or her sample. An anti-doping rule violation occurs whenever a prohibited substance (or its metabolites or markers) is found in his or her bodily specimen, whether or not the athlete intentionally or unintentionally used a prohibited substance or was negligent or otherwise at fault.

As a signatory of the World Anti-Doping Code (WADC), the IPC remains committed to a doping free sporting environment at all levels. The IPC, together with the International Federations and the National Paralympic Committees, established the IPC Anti-Doping Code to prevent doping in sport for Paralympic athletes, in the spirit of fair play. The IPC Anti-Doping Code is in conformity with the general principles of the WADC.