Russian skater Mikhail Kazelin is not allowed to take action for the time being. The 24-year-old sprinter has been temporarily suspended because he tested positive for doping in October.
Kazelin itself announced this on Facebook on Tuesday. “I’m sure many of you have noticed that I haven’t been driving since the end of October. To avoid gossip and speculation, I want to clarify the situation.”
The skater confesses that he was tested positive two months ago by the Russian anti-doping agency RUSADA. “Of course that news came as a shock to me, but I do know where it comes from. A dietary supplement that I took shortly before the test was found to contain a banned substance.”
“We are now conducting additional research to prove that I was the victim of a mistake by the manufacturer. I can say with complete honesty that I have never knowingly used a banned substance, so I have a clear conscience.”
Kazelin mainly active in B group at World Cups
Kazelin came second at the 2014 World Cup for juniors, but has made less impression since his switch to the seniors. At World Cups, he mainly has to do with a place in the B group and finished thirteenth in the European Championship sprint in 2017. A year later he became the sprint champion of his country.
In the past, Russian skaters such as Pavel Kulizhnikov and Denis Yuskov were also tested positive for doping. They were therefore missing from the Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang two years ago.
Due to an international suspension for Russia, Russian athletes of impeccable reputation were only allowed to come out there under a neutral flag. At the Summer Olympics in Tokyo (2021) and the Winter Games in Beijing (2022) it is rule also still in effect.
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