Doping and Tampering With Results Leads to Eight-Year Ban for 33-Year-Old Olympian

The Sports Tribunal of New Zealand made an announcement on Wednesday regarding an Olympic runner receiving a double ban. The runner in question is the 2014 Commonwealth games bronze medalist, Zane Robertson. Robertson first tested positive for performance-enhancing drug use in May, last year.

While his case was put on trial, Robertson claimed the drugs were administered to him as a part of medical treatment. However, reports proved that the evidence provided by the runner to support his claims were falsified. As a result, the New Zealand record holder has been slapped with not just one ban but two, one for doping and the second for tampering with the evidence.

Zane Robertson banned for 8 years

Olympic distance runner Zane Robertson is a record holder in the marathon, half marathon, and 10 km race in New Zealand. In May 2022, Zane Robertson first got into trouble after testing positive for Erythropoietin(EPO). It happened during a race in Manchester, England. Addressing the media on Wednesday, STNZ announced, “Mr. Robertson elected to have his ‘B’ sample tested and this confirmed the original result. He subsequently accepted the presence of the prohibited substance but asked to be heard in relation to sanction.”

They further revealed, “Mr. Robertson filed evidence which was contested by Drug Free Sport New Zealand (DFSNZ), and which led to the allegation of tampering.” Robertson’s actions led to him receiving a 4-year ban for doping, followed by another 4-year ban for falsifying evidence.

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But if Robertson claimed the drugs were medically administered to him, and supplied evidence to support his claim, how did it backfire? More importantly, what was this evidence?

Medical records from a medical institution in Kenya

Accepting the presence of the prohibited substance in his system, Robertson claimed it was administered to him during his Covid-19 treatment at a facility in Kenya. To support his claim, the runner produced hospital notes, reports, and an affidavit from a Kenyan doctor and a detective. However, Drug Free Sport New Zealand countered his arguments with some proof of their own.

DFSNZ provided a statement from the Vice President of the Kenyan medical facility where Robertson was allegedly getting treated. The statement claimed Robertson was never treated in the facility on the alleged dates. Furthermore, the medical records produced in the court were not generated at the facility. Lastly, out of the two doctors Robertson claimed to have treated him, one was a lab technician, whereas the other was not a staff of the medical facility.

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Convicted of two felonies, the 33-year-old runner has received a ban for eight years. Previously, Robertson has participated in the Olympics twice. Once during the 2016 Rio Olympics and for a second time at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. However, with the ban, Zane Robertson can no longer participate in any event until September 2030. The internet too has strongly reacted to Robertson’s act.