RACING: The Irish Sailing Association (ISA) is to review its anti-doping procedures after it was forced to reprimand an Irish Laser champion for taking a prescribed medicine, a drug that it had accepted for use.
A statement issued yesterday by the ISA named Olympic squad member Gavan Jones as the first Irish sailor to be reprimanded under tough anti-doping rules. A prohibited substance, fenoterol, was found in a sample provided by him at the Irish Championships last August.
The 28-year-old Howth Yacht Club sailor had been prescribed medication for treatment of a long standing medical condition and its use had been accepted by the ISA according to the statement issued jointly by the national authority and the sailor.
Last night the statement prompted other members of the 17-strong Olympic squad (who did not wish to be named) to query medication procedures.
The reprimand was meted out after a finding by the ISA's disciplinary committee that Jones, currently ranked second in the Laser class in Ireland and a squad member for the past year, had committed an offence contrary to the doping control policy.
"I don't think there was any question in the mind of the disciplinary committee that it was anything other than a bona fide mistake. I'm glad it's all over," Jones told The Irish Times from Heathrow airport last night. He was en route to Dublin after completing a winter training camp in Lanzarote.
"This is the first case for sailing and the ISA's anti-doping policy. There are procedures that may need tightening and that is what we will be reviewing", the ISA's Paddy Boyd admitted last night.
Reminding sailors of the anti-doping law, he said: "The position is very clear. Under the policy every sailor has to accept that they have an absolute responsibility for what is found in their bodies"
The presence of the banned substance was detected in Jones' urine after a routine drug test conducted by the Sports Council at this year's Laser National championships on August 24th in Ballyholme, Northern Ireland in which he finished third.
The hearing, in front of a five-man committee, took place on November 6th at the City Quay offices of Jones' solicitors, Lennon Heather Solicitors in Dublin. He was represented at the hearing by solicitor Peter Lennon.
After finding a doping offence had occurred, the committee further found that there were substantial mitigating circumstances in that pre-notification had been received by the ISA of the use by the sailor of a prescription inhaler, which contained the prohibited substance, and that the sailor had been prescribed this for treatment for a medical condition which he has had since childhood.
In accordance with ISA Doping Control Policy the committee issued a reprimand to the sailor pursuant to Rule 2.5.1.10. "This was the absolute minimum sanction available and we are pleased with that outcome given the circumstances set out in the joint statement released today," Lennon said.
This season Jones won the Ulster and Connacht Laser championships in May and July respectively. He is a former double Optimist dinghy national champion from 1987 and 1988.
As part of his ISA part-funded full-time campaign to win the Irish nomination for Athens, Jones competed on the Eurolymp circuit at Hyeres in France, Kiel in Germany and the Spa regatta in Holland.
He also competed at the European championships and qualified for the gold fleet at two of these important international events.
He is 92nd in the world rankings.
