Administering eye drops to his sick dog cost Domien Michiels his individual result at the Paris Olympics dressage after the International Testing Agency (ITA) said the Belgian equestrian athlete inadvertently tested positive for a banned substance.
The ITA said the analysis of Michiels’s sample from the Olympics reported an adverse analytical finding for dorzolamide — a prohibited substance — which resulted in an anti-doping rule violation (ADRV).
Ironically, if Michiels had taken on dorzolamide through his own eyes, it would not have been an ADRV, as the ITA said direct application to the eyes is considered a permitted route. However, all other types of administration result in an ADRV, with Michiels accepting the disqualification.
“The athlete was able to establish that dorzolamide entered his body inadvertently when he administered eye drops containing dorzolamide to his dog to treat the dog’s illness,” the ITA said in a statement.
“Considering that dorzolamide did not enter the athlete’s system through topical ophthalmic route exclusively and in light of the principle of ‘strict liability’, the presence of dorzolamide in his sample constitutes an ADRV.
“The athlete was however able to establish that he bore ‘No Fault or Negligence’ for the ADRV.”
As he bore no fault, the ITA said the only consequence was the disqualification of his individual results in the Dressage Team Grand Prix event at the Paris Games on Aug. 3.
The results of the Belgium team, which finished fifth at the Olympics, will not be disqualified.
“I accept the decision that acknowledges that I was not negligent and had no intention to cheat or break the rules,” Michiels said in a statement.
“I now look ahead to continue to give the best of myself in equestrian sports in the future.”
The 41-year-old is not the first athlete to test positive for banned substances in bizarre circumstances.
Russian teenager and figure skater Kamila Valieva tested positive for the banned substance trimetazidine, a drug used to treat angina, after what her team said was due to a mix-up with her grandfather’s heart medication.
Her positive test led to the Russian Olympic Committee being stripped of its gold medal in the team event at the 2022 Winter Olympics.
More recently, tennis world number one Jannik Sinner tested positive for banned substance clostebol when a member of his support team applied an over-the-counter spray to treat a small wound.
Although Sinner was cleared of wrongdoing, the World Anti-Doping Agency appealed that decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
His hearing will start on April 16, leaving the Italian facing the possibility of being banned for up to two years.
