A dominant American middle distance runner has been banned for four years after testing positive for an anabolic steroid that she believes came from pork in a burrito.
Shelby Houlihan, the reigning national champion and American record-holder at both 1,500 and 5,000 meters, wrote on social media Monday that she was provisionally banned by the Athletics Integrity Unit after testing positive for nandrolone, which has been found in pork. She said she appealed the ruling to the Court of Arbitration for Sport and was informed Friday that it did not accept her explanation.
“I feel completely devastated, lost, broken, angry, confused and betrayed by the very sport that I’ve loved and poured myself into just to see how good I was,” the 28-year-old wrote in an Instagram post.
“I want to be very clear. I have never taken any performance enhancing substances. And that includes that of which I am being accused.”
The AIU – which runs the anti-doping program for track and field’s international governing body, World Athletics – announced Houlihan’s ban early Tuesday.
“Each case is treated objectively in accordance with the WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) Code provisions,” Brett Clothier, who leads the AIU, said in a statement.
“After being charged by the AIU, Ms Houlihan’s case was heard by a three-member panel at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which made its decision after hearing evidence and arguments from the athlete’s lawyers and the AIU. CAS has informed us…
