Brazilian swimming legend Fabiola Molina has tested positive for Methylhexaneamine, a stimulant used heavily as a dietary supplement and a nasal decongestant, as well as in the street-drug known as “party pills”. The CBDA anti-doping commission determined that Molina’s use was not intentional or meant to gain any competitive advantage, so they gave her a lenient two-month suspension from her last competition, which was the Maria Lenk Trophy in early May. She will therefore shortly be eligible for competition again, but has had her results since the meet erased, including her qualifying standards for the Shanghai World Championships. Read more here on theswimmerscircle.com and SwimNews.com.
In a statement to Brazilian media, Molina said: “I would like to point out, firstly, that the presence of a substance prohibited in the body of an athlete may not be a sign of doping. As strange as that may sound, my case came about because of my carelessness that showed in a random test and not in competition [the argument being that a stimulant would only be of benefit in such circumstances]. In my case, given that there was no intention to improve my performance, I was punished for two months, where I could have received a penalty of between a month and two years.”
