In August 2019 the International Tennis Federation (ITF) has reported an anti-doping rule violation against the Kazakh tennis player Beibit Zhukavev after his A and B samples tested positive for the prohibited substances Heptaminol and Methylhexaneamine (dimethylpentylamine). After notification the Athlete gave a prompt admission, waived his right to be heard, accepted a provisional suspension and the sanction proposed by the ITF.
The Athlete denied the intentional use, requested for a reduced sanction and assumed that the supplement ‘Nox Pump’ he had used was contaminated. This pre-workout formula was recommended to him by his cousing and he had used sachets of this supplement in December 2018. He explained that in July 2019 he saw the remaining two sachtets and had ingested half of a sachet before the match. He acknowledged that he didn’t check the ingredients of this supplement before using and he failed to mention this supplement on the Doping Control Form due to he didn’t understand the Doping Control Officers’s instructions and he was unaware the he could have a representative assist with translation.
Analysis of the remaining sachet in the Laboratorium confirmed the presence of the prohibited substances with levels consistent with the concentrations found in the Athlete’s samples while these substances were not mentioned as ingredient on the product label of the sachets.
The ITF accepts that the Athlete’s violation was not intentional and that he established how the substances entered his system. In view of the Athlete’s conduct the ITF holds that the Athlete established No Significant Fault or Negligence although his degree of Fault was still high. Further the ITF considers the Athlete’s prompt admission, his youth, his lack of anti-doping education and his effort in completing an online anti-doping education.
Therefore the ITF decides on 9 January 2020 to impose a 20 month period of ineligibility on the Athlete starting on the date of the sample collection, i.e. on 15 July 2019.
