Doping authorities to analyze “B Sample” on November 4th or 5th

Malaysian daily The Star reported today that the B sample from one of the top Malaysian shuttler whose A sample earlier tested positive for a banned substance will be opened […]

Malaysian daily The Star reported today that the B sample from one of the top Malaysian shuttler whose A sample earlier tested positive for a banned substance will be opened and analysed in Oslo, Norway, on November 4th or 5th, in the presence of the athlete.  The Star had earlier reported that world #1 Lee Chong Wei had been ‘implicated’ as the player concerned, but has since insisted that no official confirmation has been issued on the player’s identity.

Analysis of the A sample saw traces of a banned substance dexamethasone, which “is not a performance-enhancing drug but a type of steroid medication with anti-inflammatory effects that is usually used to aid an athlete’s rehabilitation,” explains the Star.

A lot of athletes in the French Open, currently underway in Paris this week, have voiced their wish to wait for the B sample to be tested before they will comment on the issue, but most were in shock after the news broke last week-end.

According to some statistics, the chances of getting a negative test after a positive A sample are very low, but The Star also reminded its readers of the case of Sairul Ayob Amar, a former national player who tested positive for the same substance in 2006. “The lab was at a university in Belgium. I was so nervous. The doctor there told me that it was almost 99.9% impossible for the B sample to be negative. They were very surprised when it turned out to be negative,” said Sairul to the Star.

Raphaël Sachetat

About Raphaël Sachetat

Raphael is the Chief Editor of Badzine International. He is the founder of the website together with Jean François Chauveau. After many years writing for the BWF and many publications around the world about badminton, he now leads a team of young and dynamic writers for Badzine.