Sprinter Campbell-Brown may get away lightly

London, July 4 (IANS/CMC)

Veronica Campbell-Brown of Jamaica

Jamaican sprinter Veronica Campbell-Brown, who tested positive for a banned substance in May, is unlikely to receive the standard two-year ban.

A report in The Times London meshes with previous remarks from the International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) that Campbell-Brown’s case appears to involve a “lesser” offence to cheat, despite its ability to act as a masking agent for performance-enhancing drugs, reports CMC.

Campbell-Brown tested positive for a diuretic but the IAAF said that she did not use the substance, reported to be Lasix (furosemide), to cheat, despite its ability to act as a masking agent for performance-enhancing drugs.

A reduced ban from two years can vary from six months to as little as a public warning.

If Campbell-Brown receives a six-month suspension, it will draw comparisons to a ban given to fellow Jamaican Olympic champion sprinter Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce in 2009.

Fraser-Pryce tested positive for Oxycodone, but her ban was reduced to six months after her explanation that she took the banned painkiller for a toothache.

Campbell-Brown, a seven-time Olympic medallist and two-time 200 metres champion, is under a provisional suspension by Jamaica’s Athletics Federation, whose disciplinary panel is handling the case.

While Brown herself has not commented since her positive test was first reported last month, her management company On Track Management (OTM) has quoted her as denying knowingly taking a banned substance.