Doping Reaches Gymnastics

Kuksenkov Scratches Russian Nationals After Positive Doping Test for Meldonium 

Even though Valentina says a bare minimum was in his system, as a banned substance no trace amount is permissible under international sporting law, so he will still face consequences. Research is being done to determine how long the drug might stay in a body's system after withdrawal, but the research will not be finished until after Rio, putting many athlete's Olympic ambitions in doubt. Meldonium was added to the banned-drug list in January 2016; WADA and RUSADA gave warning to the Russian national teams in August 2015. 

UPDATE: Kuksenkov speaks (translation provided by swanvika.tumblr.com):

Your doping test sample was taken on March 15 and information about the upcoming ban meldonium came to the Russian elite sport on August 1st. How can you explain all of this ?
According to our doctor, the last delivery of meldonium for our training base “Round Lake” was made on March 2015. After WADA circulated news about its upcoming entry in the list of prohibited substances, it was forbidden for us to take it. I will explain how we make do. There are plastic cups that all the guys put in lockers and it says :“ it is necessary to have a drink after a workout.” Typically, it has 3-4 vitamins. We accept it, drink water and go, without asking for any details. Because if the doctor says so - he knows that nothing illegal is in our tablets (because he works with the state). We have medicines that are strictly forbidden to buy at the pharmacy, even if someone is sick ! Because two medicines for the nose and throat can be quite different : one has banned components , the other is “pure”. All our supplies from only the team doctor.

Then, you’ve not been taking meldonium since August 1st… There were no more supplies, in fact, the remains were destroyed, all entries were recorded in a special register. And we can see that there’s only a low concentration in my analysis so it can be easily determined that I did not take it for a long time.

Do you feel some positive effects ? No tangible benefits. Perhaps it somehow acts on the heart muscle, but you know that in general, in gymnastics, doping isn’t worth it. It’s a complicated kind of sport where we need precision movements, where doping doesn’t work! It is clear that this campaign is addressed to us.

Is it an official sample or a possible use? The letter says possible use. It came on April 1 after my victory in the all-around. I was suspended from the championships and left. So we talked about the traces. But these are old traces. Everyone knows that meldonium holds in for 2 years. And it will appear even for those who used it one year ago! It is unreasonable and unfair. I have always believed, and I will consider myself an honest athlete, and the truth is on my side. Hopefully, RGF will support me.

What do you plan to do with the federation ? I think that we’ll request deeper analysis and see experts. I don’t understand a lot of this, I’m not a doctor, but there are competent people who can help!

                                                                                                                                               

I don't understand why WADA would put a drug on a banned list without taking into consideration its subsistence length. That is standard procedure and they've done it for past drugs. And with that being said, why didn't RUSADA foresee this might happen and take WADA to court to get a later date as soon as word of its ban period became known? When WADA made it known that meldonium was henceforth illegal, there was an entire procedure for nations (represented by scientists, doctors, athletic federations) to give input into when it would be most effective to go into policy. Where was Russia? I remember before Sharapova was tested positive, Russian media insisted the drug stayed in the system from seven months up to a year. That was the number I was reading everywhere. Now they're saying traces can exist up to two years. It probably does stay in some people's systems for longer than normal, on a case by case basis, but there is so much speculation being presented as facts so you don't know if an athlete is using these estimates to cover themselves, or if they're the ultimate victims of poor policy. Large scale and credible research is on the way but it won't be completed until the fall of 2016. Obviously the situation requires something more urgent, so I honestly don't know what's going to happen to Nikolai. He might get banned from the Games just so Russia can prove to the world they are being proactive in anti-doping protocol, which is why Kuksenkov asks for RGF's unwavering support. 

Does he have yours?