Russian coach gets four-year ban for trying to bribe official

[April 17, 2020]  MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian track and field coach Andrei Eremenko has been banned for four years after attempting to bribe a dope tester in 2017, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) said in a statement.

The coach had initially been cleared by the anti-doping panel of the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) in December 2018 but RUSADA submitted an appeal to CAS, sport's highest court, which changed the decision.

The sole arbitrator in the case decided there was "no reasonable doubt" that Eremenko had attempted to bribe the official on Sept. 2, 2017, CAS said.

RUSADA had sought a urine sample from hurdler Yulia Malueva, who was coached by Eremenko, during the 2017 Russian athletics championships in Sochi, but the body said in a statement that the athlete tried to evade testing by simulating ill health.

Malueva, who complained to RUSADA officials of nausea and a headache, produced a urine sample after a long delay but dropped it into the toilet along with the container when she fell to the floor after allegedly feeling faint.

Eremenko then called an ambulance and Malueva was taken to hospital "without any reasonable basis," CAS said in the ruling. He proceeded to try and bribe a RUSADA official to prevent an authentic urine sample being collected.

Malueva was previously disqualified by the RUSADA anti-doping committee for four years until April 11, 2022.

(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Ken Ferris)

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