Retired Australian swimmer Brenton Rickard has returned a positive drug test from a sample taken at the 2012 London Olympics.
Key points:
- Brenton Rickard was a member of the Australian men’s team that won 4x100m medley relay bronze at the London Olympics
- The sample was taken in 2012 and has now tested positive for furosemide, which can be used as a masking agent
- If he fails to prove his innocence, the entire team will be stripped of their bronze medal
The sample returned a positive result for the banned diuretic furosemide when it was re-tested recently.
The breaststroker will front the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland on Monday, where he will have to prove his innocence.
If he fails, the 2012 4×100 metre medley relay team that won bronze would be stripped of their medals.
Rickard swam in the heats of the 2012 event to help Australia qualify for the finals, but did not swim in the final race itself. That team was composed of Hayden Stoeckel, Christian Sprenger, Matt Targett and James Magnussen.
Tommaso D’Orsogna was also a member of the bronze-medal-winning team.
Furosemide and other diuretics are not considered doping agents on their own, but cause extensive dilution of the urine and can act as a masking agent for other banned products.
