United States sprinter Erriyon Knighton has been banned for four years after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld an appeal by World Athletics and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). The ruling overturns a previous decision that had cleared the 21-year-old of a doping violation.
Knighton tested positive for trenbolone, a banned substance used for muscle growth, in March 2024.
He was initially cleared by an independent arbitrator after arguing the adverse finding was caused by contaminated meat, a decision that would have allowed him to compete at the 2024 Olympics. However, World Athletics and WADA appealed, contending the evidence was “statistically impossible” and “fell short of the required proof of source.”
In its ruling, CAS agreed with the appeal, stating its panel found “no proof that would support the conclusion that oxtail imported into the USA would be likely to contain trenbolone residues at the level required to have caused the athlete’s adverse analytical finding.”
The ban is effective immediately. Knighton, who finished fourth in the 200m at the Tokyo Olympics, was not selected for the U.S. team for the upcoming World Championships in Tokyo.
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