A powerlifter, surf life saver, and an amateur athlete have been sanctioned for doping offences, the South African Institute for Drug Free Sport (SAIDS) announced. Powerlifter Hendrik Gideon van Zyl was sanctioned with a four year ban for an anti-doping rule violation (ADRV) involving a metabolite of metandienone, an anabolic steroid. He didn’t contest the charge, and his ban will run from 20 May 2021.

Tanya Pieterse received a one year reduction to a four year sanction, after entering into a Results Management Agreement with SAIDS. The Surf life saving athlete returned an adverse analytical finding (AAF – or ‘positive test’) for metabolites of oxandrolone and clenbuterol. As a result of her admission of the ADRV after her AAF, her three year ban will run from 1 July, the date of her provisional suspension.

Mosito Lehata, an amateur athlete registered with the Lesotho Amateur Athletics Association (LAAA), was sanctioned with a five year ban for two ADRVs. Lehata returned an AAF for anti-asthma drug salbutamol, which the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) considers a prohibited beta-2 agonist unless inhaled to a maximum of 1,600mg over 24 hours ‘in divided doses not to exceed 800mg over 12 hours’. Or, in other words, ‘The presence in urine of salbutamol in excess of 1000 ng/mL […] is not consistent with therapeutic use of the substance and will be considered as an Adverse Analytical Finding (AAF) unless the Athlete proves, through a controlled pharmacokinetic study, that the abnormal result was the consequence of a therapeutic dose (by inhalation) up to the maximum dose indicated above’.

Lehata was also charged with Tampering with the Doping Control process. He did not contest either charge and as such, his five year ban will run from 9 June 2021, the date of his provisional suspension.