- Set to compete, defend title 48 hours to World Athletics Championship
Reigning World 100m hurdles champion and record holder, Tobi Amusan of Nigeria has received the nod to compete and defend her title at the upcoming World Athletics Championships flagging off on Saturday, August 19 in Budapest, Hungary.
The green light came from the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) in a statement issued on Thursday and clearing the Nigerian Star of alleged doping charges against her.
Rising from its meeting on Thursday, the panel declared Amusan not guilty of “Anti-Doping Rule Violation (ADRV) of three Whereabouts Failures within a 12-month period.”
The AIU’s statement read in part; “A panel of the Disciplinary Tribunal, by majority decision, has today found that Tobi Amusan has not committed an Anti-Doping Rule Violation (ADRV) of three Whereabouts Failures within a 12-month period.
“AIU Head Brett Clothier has indicated the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) is disappointed by this decision and will review the reasoning in detail before deciding whether to exercise its right of appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) within the applicable deadline. The decision is currently confidential but will be published in due course.”
Also confirming that Tobi Amusan has been cleared of the charges, the Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) said she is expected to proceed to Budapest for the defence of her gold medal earned last year at the 18th edition of the World Athletics Championships.
With the clearance, Amusan is presented with an opportunity of defending the only title she is yet to defend in her entire career. So far, the Ogun State-born champion has successfully defended her Nigeria, African Championships, African Games, Commonwealth Games, and Diamond League titles.
Meanwhile, latest reports emerging from the AIU indicate that the panel of three arbitrators absolved Amusan of two out of the three missed tests, after the Nigerian athlete argued that the tester had not made sufficient efforts to locate her.
Notably, throughout this process, Amusan consistently maintained her innocence and stated that she is a clean athlete. She even mentioned on her Facebook page last month, “I have faith that this will be resolved in my favour and that I will be competing at the World Championships in August.”
In mid-July, news broken out that the 26-year-old athlete faced charges of three whereabouts failures, which constitutes an anti-doping rule violation for missing three out-of-competition tests within a 12-month period.
