The Centro Caribe Sport Hearing Panel lifted the provisional suspension of the Cuban weightlifter Marifélix Sarría Ruiz. The measure remained in force since last August.
The members of the group in charge of the investigation into the girl for violating anti-doping rules determined that she incurred a violation, but there was no fault or negligence, so no period of ineligibility will be imposed on her.
The young weightlifter from Cienfuegos emerged with a gold medal from the XXIV Central American and Caribbean Games in San Salvador 2023. However, the joy of the moment lived on the Salvadoran platform turned into a nightmare when it was learned that a urine sample, taken during the competition, tested positive for the substance Boldenone and its metabolites.
The detected substance belongs to group S1.1 of anabolic androgenic steroids on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s 2023 List of Prohibited Substances and Methods.
After learning about the situation, as ordered by the protocol in these cases, the athlete requested the opening and analysis of sample B and proceeded to declare that the origin of the substance in her body was a product of contaminated meat that she consumed prior to their foray into the Central Caribbean event.
In October 2023, the FMSI Anti-Doping Laboratory in Rome, Italy, accredited by the World Anti-Doping Agency, carried out the established tests on the sample, confirming the presence of Boldenone, its metabolites and its exogenous origin.
Given this result, Centro Caribe Sport proceeded to formally blame Sarría Ruiz, who rejected the accusation and requested a hearing to defend himself. According to the panel’s report, the parties were summoned on January 18, 2024 and final arguments were presented a month later.
The Cuban athlete, as required by procedure, presented evidence, evidence and testimonies from witnesses that supported the veracity of her defense.
It was found that the altered sample was due to the consumption of contaminated pork, provided by its parents without being aware that the animal had been exposed to the prohibited substance.
Among the allegations presented before the panel were those of Marifélix’s coach, Yoani Giniebra, and Dr. Yamil Gutiérrez, a doctor linked to the Cuban Weightlifting Federation, who confirmed that in four years the Cienfuegos native underwent 13 anti-doping controls without the presence of harmful substances will be detected.
During the hearing, the accusing party did not make specific allegations, nor did it provide evidence of intentionality, fault or negligence on the part of the athlete, so the panel determined to assign credibility and probative value to the scientific, documentary and testimonial evidence presented by the accused. .
The low concentration of Boldenone was also ruled, but that it was not the final part of the elimination of the substance. The panel placed special emphasis on the girl’s credibility and story, supported by the evidence she volunteered. He recognized the work of the commission of specialists who took on the task of doing everything possible to establish the origin of the substance and corroborate its explanation.
After the panel’s ruling, Sarria Ruiz and her legal representative were immediately notified and now the woman from Cienfuegos will be able to return to the platforms to continue writing her story.
(With information from JIT)
