A rugby player from Caerphilly has been handed a four-year ban by regulatory body UK Anti-Doping.
Kurt Clabby, 29, was found guilty of “evading, refusing, or failing to submit to sample collection” at a UKAD tribunal in December, and has been hit with a four-year ban.
An independent National Anti-Doping Panel voted unanimously in favour of the charge, and Clabby has been banned until midnight on January 27, 2020, after he was originally suspended on January 28 2016.
The charge related to an incident on December Tuesday 1, 2015, when Clabby, who also played for Nelson RFC, was training with Bedwas.
Three UKAD officers visited the club during an evening training session to test four players, including Clabby, but the full-back failed to provide a sample, having left the club after the session.
After his absence was noted, head coach Steve Law was unable to contact Clabby, which the player told the tribunal was due to his phone being turned off.
He claimed that he was in a rush to attend an emergency call-out by a contractor on behalf of Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water as part of his job, and left Bridgefield without telling the UKAD officers.
As a result, the panel determined that Clabby knew he had been selected to provide a sample for testing, had deliberately avoided the UKAD team, and did so to evade testing.
UKAD Chief Executive, Nicole Sapstead said: “Kurt Clabby’s decision to evade sample collection is not just a serious breach of the rules but it also goes against the spirit of sport and his responsibility as a sportsperson.
“We treat violations such as this with the upmost seriousness and we will always seek to impose the maximum possible sanction on any individual who decides to consciously cheat the system.”
A WRU statement said: “Following a four year suspension to Kurt Clabby of Bedwas and Nelson for evading, refusing or failing to submit a sample collection, the WRU has reiterated its call for players to ‘Stay Onside’.
“The Welsh Rugby Union has increased its level of anti-doping education across all levels of Welsh rugby and has invited community clubs to nominate club integrity officers to receive further guidance.
“There is no place for doping in Welsh rugby.”