Rugby union player Leigh Dearden banned for four years
Press Release
11th October 2019
Rugby union player Leigh Dearden, of Lincoln RFC, has been suspended from all sport for a period of four years following an Anti-Doping Rule Violation (ADRV).
Mr Dearden tested positive for the presence of three prohibited substances following an in-competition test on 23 March 2019, after a match against Southwell RFC.
The substances were: 1) drostanolone and its metabolite 2α-methyl-5α-androstan-3α-ol-17-one; 2) oxymetholone metabolites 2-hydroxymethyl-17-methyl-5α-androstan-3,17diol and 2-hydroxymethyl-17α-methyl-5α-androstan—3,ζ,17β-triol; and 3) cocaine metabolite benzoylecgonine. Drostanolone and oxymetholone are non-specified anabolic androgenic steroids prohibited at all times. Cocaine is a non-specified stimulant prohibited in-competition only.
Mr Dearden was charged with a breach of World Rugby Regulation 21.2.1 - "Presence of a Prohibited Substance or its Metabolites or Markers in a Player’s Sample".
UK Anti-Doping’s Director of Operations, Pat Myhill, said: “Once again, an athlete has been banned from sport after an anti-doping test found a cocktail of prohibited substances in their system. We have seen several of these instances in recent months and it’s a worrying trend.
“While it is important from a clean sport perspective to ensure athletes are not cheating their competitors, fans, sponsors and sport as a whole, it is also crucial that athletes at all levels understand the potentially serious health consequences that these substances can cause.”
The period of ineligibility shall apply from the date of provisional suspension (31 May 2019) until 30 May 2023.
