Yul Moldauer has 3 siblings! But you can safely say he has 4! Wondering why? It’s his friend Vlad M Kolomiza. You may not know who Vlad is, but if you ask him about Yul Moldauer, Vlad would say Yul is his “brother from another mother.” Vlad has been one of the few people who has stood in the gymnast’s corner, supporting him during his good times and now even during his difficult period! It has been a harrowing ordeal since Yul’s doping ban became official. Due to ‘whereabouts failure,’ under the USADA Protocol for Olympic and Paralympic Movement Testing, a 16-month suspension was announced for Yul on January 20, 2024.

Since the verdict, the media trials and public judgment have come as a cruel punishment for the Olympian. The US World Championship 2023 bronze medalist has had to face ridicule and scathing rebuke on social media. But thankfully, Yul has now found some support from the community and, rather, one of his spirited friends. And he isn’t supporting Yul through his words, but there is something else?

Yul Moldauer’s friend comes in with aid for the gymnast

Yul’s childhood friend, Vlad, has come out publicly in total support of his buddy. Rejecting the idea that Yul would partake in doping, Vlad shared on his Instagram story and said, “Those who know Yul know that he would never taint or cheat his body or his gymnastics career by taking any kind of sports-enhancing drugs.” For him, Yul Moldauer is an asset to the gymnastics community: “Yul shows up every single day to better himself & his community by working extremely hard and being incredibly disciplined. Gymnastics is his passion and his livelihood. Yul means more to the gymnastics community than his awards.”

Even though Vlad’s words come as comfort and consolation for his gymnast friend, Vlad’s backing of the 10xNCAA Champion doesn’t stop there. And thus he has set up a donation initiative for Yul on GoFundMe.com. Vlad, however, has clarified the motive behind setting up the donation drive. This is not about appealing or protesting against USADA’s decision. The aim is simply to support Yul financially during this period because USOPC won’t pay Moldauer during these 16 months. “The purpose of this donation is to support Yul Moldauer and compensate for his losses. This has nothing to do with taking sides with WADA or USADA,” mentioned Vlad.

Vlad has known Yul since the former was 7 years old. They have trained together at 5280 Gymnastics. For Vlad, they are practically brothers; “best homie,” Vlad said once on his Instagram. Thus, seeing Yul get discredited and tarnished struck a chord with him. Vlad probably would have taken this initiative to alleviate the pain and stress that Yul must have been going through.

While Yul has support like this, he can probably feel relieved and catch a breather. After the California Pacific Rim gold medalist 2024 had a tough start to 2025. But what is this whole hassle about?

How did Yul get embroiled in the doping controversy

It all started with Yul himself disclosing that he had been suspended for 16 months for a ‘whereabouts violation.’ Moldauer elaborated on 16th January on Instagram (deleted post), telling us his side of the story: “This suspension stems from missing three required whereabouts updates within a 12-month period. The first two tests were missed due to competitions, where they had drug testing stations, which I passed. The third violation happened after the Olympic Trials, as I was processing the disappointment of missing out on my second Olympic Games.”

The 3rd whereabouts failure was the most surprising of all—“While in Florida, I was in the area but not at the exact location I had listed when a tester arrived, when I got in contact with the test officer, I was 45 minutes away and told him I was in the car and ready to drive and meet him, but he said he had only 15 minutes to wait, which resulted in my third missed test.”

As we know, USADA is very strict with such rules. The ‘Whereabouts Violations’ by Yul thus invited sanction under the USADA, the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee National Anti-Doping Policy, as well as the International Gymnastics Federation Anti-Doping Rules. They all follow the World Anti-Doping Code, and the rules say an athlete can be banned for 1 to 2 years for a whereabouts rule violation. In fact, if you remember, the US sprinter Christian Coleman was suspended for 18 months for missing 3 drug tests over a 12-month period in 2021, due to the same ‘whereabouts failure.’

Yul Moldauer has since accepted the sanctions on his Instagram post. “Those (whereabouts) failures are on me. I am responsible for following the rules completely, and I (fell) short of that. It really is that simple.” He has since started working on making a successful clean return. The 2028 LA Olympics is on his mind. He remains dedicated to his passion and “upholding the highest standards of athletic integrity.”