Doping violation ban: Can Amusan scale this hurdle?

<p>Five days before her women’s 100m hurdles world title and world record clock a year; and exactly one month to the 2023 World Athletics Championships, which holds from August 19 to 27 in Budapest, Hungary, hurdler Tobi Amusan, has been handed a ban from the Athletics Integrity Unit for missing three out of competition tests in 12 months.</p>, <p>The women’s 100m hurdles world record holder was handed the ban on Wednesday, hours after she also revealed the charge and stated her cleanliness.</p>, <p>“The AIU confirms that it has today (Wednesday) charged and provisionally suspended Tobi Amusan (NGR) for three Whereabouts Failures,” AIU stated in a statement on Wednesday.</p>, <p>“The charge will be heard by the Disciplinary Tribunal and determined before the World Athletics Championships.”</p>, <p>Before AIU’s announcement, the 26-year-old vowed to fight the charge.</p>, <p>“I intend to fight this charge and will have my case decided by a tribunal of three arbitrators before the start of next month’s World Championships,” Amusan said.</p>, <p>“I am a clean athlete, and I am regularly; (maybe more than the usual) tested by the AIU – I was tested within days of my third ‘missed test.’ I have faith that this will be resolved in my favour and that I will be competing at the World Championships in August.”</p>, <p>Although the case will be heard before the World Championships, her chances of defending her title is hanging in the balance. She also stands the risk of missing the Olympics in 2024, if she’s not able to come up with a strong defence during the hearing.</p>, <p>Amusan’s charge of whereabouts failure is under article 2.4 of the AIU in which the consequences is a two-year ban if found guilty.</p>, <p>“Under the World Athletics Anti-Doping Rules, any combination of three whereabouts failures (Filing Failure and/or Missed Test) within a period of 12 months constitute an anti-doping rule violation, for which the applicable sanction is two years’ ineligibility subject to a reduction to a minimum of one year depen