A male Scots amateur rugby player has been banned from the sport for two years after taking a female fertility drug.
Gala winger Craig Russell – a serving police officer – failed a drugs test during a match against Edinburgh Academicals in October 2017 and has been serving an intermin suspension ever since.
Clomiphene, a selective oestrogen receptor modulator, is prohibited at all times by World Anti-Doping.
In men, it can alter testosterone levels for increased muscle mass.
The player was found to not have, nor ever had, a therapeutic use exemption to use clomiphene .
Russell becomes the eighth Scotland-based player to be banned for anti-doping offences since 2010.
A spokesman for Scottish Rugby said: “This has been a long, drawn out case but has now been concluded and demonstrates the strict liability stance taken by Scottish Rugby and UK Anti-Doping. It is the responsibility of every player to play and train cleanly and not seek to take short-cuts through the use of prohibited substances.
“We use an intelligence led approach and will act on any credible information received to instigate testing either in or out of competition.”
