Thai SEA Games drug users were innocent: Doping official

JAKARTA (JP): Two Thai athletes convicted of using banned substances by the 19th SEA Games medical committee were innocent, according to Dangsina Moeloek, the organizers' doping test and gender verification deputy.

Dangsina told The Jakarta Post yesterday that the Thais were using salbutamol legally because they had included doctors' certificates when they completed the drug declaration forms after winning their golds.

The organizers announced last month that Nuanwan Kerdsumran, who won the gold in the women's 10 meters air rifle match, and David Yimsumruay, who won the gold in the decathlon, were found guilty of using salbutamol because they did not include doctors' certificates when completing the declaration forms.

Salbutamol is taken for breathing problems such as asthma and has an anabolic side effect.

International Olympic Committee rules state that salbutamol is permitted for inhaler users and must be declared in writing to the relevant medical authority prior to the competition.

"As long as the athletes can show their doctors' certificates saying they use salbutamol legally, then they are innocent," Dangsina said.

Along with the two Thais, Indonesian male cyclist Tonton Susanto and Myanmar's body builder Khin Naung Hwe were also convicted of using banned substances.

The SEA Games Federation Medical Committee's secretary, Dr Carmen Jahya, said Wednesday that the certificates were never passed on to her committee.

Carmen said there was "a missing link because the urine collectors said they did not receive any letters."

Dangsina said Dr Yingdao Krairiksh of Thailand filled in the drug declaration form for Nuanwan and handed it over to the urine collector, a member of the doping committee, after Nuanwan won the gold.

The doping form and the declaration form were then passed on to Dr Varin Tansuphasiri, the medical committee chairman, on Oct. 16.

On. Oct. 18, Dr Arth Nana completed the same procedure for David.

"At an Oct. 21 meeting , Carmen only photocopied the doping control forms," Dangsina said.

"In this case, the doping committee officials had done their job according to the procedures and the Thailand doctors had filled in the drug declaration forms which meant there were no problems at all with the Thailand athletes.

"After the A samples tested positive, Carmen never asked me about the declaration forms."

Disappointment

Dangsina expressed her disappointment at the organizers' decision to announce the athletes names.

"They should have completed all procedures and made sure that their urine tests were positive before announcing the names. We should have a presumption of innocence," she said.

"The organizers must rectify the announcement because it's about a nation's good name. It's not easy to rehabilitate somebody's name. They should have asked us in the first place," she said, adding that Thailand had already protested to her about the announcement.

"I also regretted why I only found out about it yesterday. If I had known about it earlier, it might not have been this complicated," she said.

Dangsina said the doping committee, which was under the organizers' competition department, only gave the samples and not the names to the Jakarta doping laboratory, which received a temporary accreditation from the Sydney doping laboratory for one week before and after the SEA Games.

"After testing an A sample, the lab hands over the result to the doping officials, who search for the athlete's identification. After finding out the ID, we have to check his or her paperwork to ascertain if he or she included a doctor's certificate.

"It's a matter of procedure. It seems the coordination between us was not good," she said.

Dangsina said all the papers regarding doping and gender verification had been submitted to the competition deputy, Muhammad Hindarto.

Carmen could not be reached for comment yesterday. (yan)