U.S. Paralympic Track & Field Athlete Chelsea McClammer Accepts Finding of No Fault
Press Release
11th March 2019
Colorado Springs, Colo. (March 8, 2019) – USADA announced today that Chelsea McClammer, of Champaign, Ill., an athlete in the sport of Paralympic track and field, has tested positive for a prohibited substance, which was determined to have been ingested by her without fault or negligence. As a result, McClammer will not face a period of ineligibility for her positive test, and because the sample was collected out-of-competition, there are no competitive results to disqualify.
McClammer, 25, tested positive for hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) as the result of an out-of-competition urine sample she provided on August 30, 2018. HCTZ is a Specified Substance in the class of Diuretics and Masking Agents and prohibited at all times under the USADA Protocol for Olympic and Paralympic Movement Testing, the United States Olympic Committee National Anti-Doping Policies, and the International Paralympic Committee Anti-Doping Code, all of which have adopted the World Anti-Doping Code and the World Anti-Doping Agency Prohibited List.
During USADA’s investigation into the circumstances of her case, McClammer provided USADA with records for a permitted oral prescription medication she was taking at the time of her positive test. This permitted medication did not list HCTZ or any other prohibited substances on the label. However, detailed laboratory analysis subsequently conducted on the athlete’s medication tablets, as well as the same brand and dose of tablets independently sourced, confirmed HCTZ trace contamination consistent with McClammer’s positive test.
“While the rules require this to be publicly announced, we strongly believe this case, and others like it, should be considered no violation,” said Travis T. Tygart, Chief Executive Officer for USADA. “We will continue to advocate in the WADA Code review process that where there is no intent to cheat and no performance benefit, an athlete should not face any violation or unnecessary public attention.”
