Suspended Springboks cleared to return
CAPE TOWN (Reuters) - Suspended Springboks Bjorn Basson and Chiliboy Ralepelle were on Friday cleared to play after a South African Rugby Union (SARU) judicial committee found there was 'no fault' on their part after the pair tested positive for the banned stimulant methylhexaneamine (MHA)."I don't feel vindicated as much as pure delight because it proves to South Africa and the world that we are not cheats," said SARU chief executive Jurie Roux.
"We have revisited our processes and we will not be endorsing any supplements from now on and will instruct our players not to take any supplements."
The pair, both of whom play for the Super 14 champion Bulls franchise, will be available for selection for the team's pre-season friendly against the Southern Kings in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.
Traces of MHA were found in Basson's and Ralepelle's urine samples following random testing after the Springboks' 23-21 win over Ireland in Dublin on November 6.
As a result, the players were sent home from the team's European tour and provisionally suspended for three months. Their 'B' samples subsequently tested positive.
The judicial committee found that the Springboks' conditioning coach, Neels Liebel, instructed the entire team to ingest a product called Anabolic Nitro Nitric Oxide Extreme Energy Surge, manufactured by supplement company USN, directly before the Test against Ireland and again at half-time.
The same regime was followed earlier in the year before each of the Springboks' three home Tri-Nations matches against New Zealand and Australia.
Positive tests usually carry a two-year ban for a first offence but Advocate Attie Heyns, who represented the players, successfully argued that MHA should be treated as a specified stimulant after the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) down-graded its status from that of a non-specified stimulant on January 1.
Under International Rugby Board (IRB) regulations, this distinction allows for a ban to be reduced or lifted if a player can establish how a banned substance entered their body.
USN enjoys a high profile in South African sport. It sponsors many prominent Springboks, including Pierre Spies, as well as the Bulls franchise, and aggressively markets its products to rugby players of all levels.
