Australian Government: Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority

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SuBSTANCES

Supplements

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Prohibited substances.

ASADA is not in a position to provide information or advice to athletes about the status of supplements in sport.

The Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority is responsible for Australia’s anti-doping program, which is consistent with the World Anti-Doping Code.

ASADA can neither give advice to athletes about sports supplements, nor advise if they contain prohibited substances.

The contents of supplements can vary from batch to batch and may intentionally or unintentionally contain prohibited substances. Athletes who take supplements are, therefore, at risk of committing an inadvertent anti-doping rule violation.

There have been cases where both Australian and international athletes have been sanctioned after they have used supplements that they thought were okay, but which were actually contaminated with prohibited substances.

The presence of a prohibited substance may result in an anti-doping rule violation, whether its use was intentional or unintentional.

Under the World Anti-Doping Code strict liability principle, athletes are ultimately responsible for any substance found in their body, regardless of how it got there.

 

Athlete advisory: supplement warning


ASADA wishes to advise all Australian athletes subject to doping control against the use of supplements, particularly those containing Geranamine.

 

A warning about supplements containing Geranamine was issued by the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES) in 2009. Geranamine is a concentrated extract of Geranium oil and is credited with stimulant and fat-burning properties.

 

A constituent of Geranamine is methylhexanamine which is categorised as an S6 prohibited stimulant under the World Anti-Doping Code. Athletes in possession, using or attempting to use this prohibited stimulant potentially face serious penalties, ranging from a warning to a two-year ban for a first offence.

 

Athletes subject to doping control should avoid the use of supplements as they pose significant risks to them and their athletic career. Supplements may intentionally contain prohibited substances or they may be inadvertently contaminated with prohibited substances. Geranamine is an ingredient contained in some supplements which have resulted in anti-doping rule violations in several countries.

 

Jamaican athletes Yohan Blake, Marvin Anderson, Allodin Fothergill and Lansford Spence were suspended for three-months after each returned positive tests for methylhexanamine from samples taken during the June 2009 Jamaica National Track and Field Championships.

 

Athletes are at risk of committing a doping violation if they choose to use supplements, as they always bear the ultimate responsibility for the products they ingest.

 

ASADA and the CCES are members of the Association of National Anti-Doping Organisations.