Tobi Amusan: Inside Look at World Record Holders Suspension, Her Charges and Possible Punishments

• Tobi Amusan has been suspended by Athletics Integrity United for missing drug tests
• The Nigerian has pleaded her innocence and vowed to clear her name
• Sports Brief delves into her charge and looks at the possible sanctions if the World Champion is found guilty

The news of Tobi Amusan getting provisionally suspended by the Athletics Integrity Unit(AIU) has rattled her fanbase after it emerged that she had skipped three drug tests.

The 100m hurdles world record holder and world champion broke the news herself on her Instagram account before the AIU confirmed that they had suspended the Nigerian a couple of hours later.

Amusan has reiterated her innocence and has vowed to clear her name in time to defend her title at the World Athletics Championships next month.

The fact that the un-submitted drug tests happened in a span of 12 months, where she won the world title and broke the record, has cast doubt on her achievements from some quarters on social media as she prepares to face the tribunal.

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So what exactly has the 26-year-old been accused of? Sports Brief takes a look at the charges facing the Nigerian as the AIU ramps up on doping and anti-doping violations worldwide.

The World Anti-doping Code thrives on the promotion of clean sport and abhors the use of performance-enhancing substances to gain an undue advantage over an opponent.

World Anti-doping Code of Conduct

The code has a number of guidelines for how an athlete is supposed to conduct themselves, failure to which they will contravene the rules and face sanctions.

The first two rules are self-explanatory, as an athlete will be adjudged to have broken the rules should a prohibited substance be found in his or her sample(either urine or blood). The athlete will also be flouting rules should there be evidence of attempted use of the prohibited substances.

An athlete will also be charged should he or she evade, refuse or fail to submit a sample for testing. An athlete cannot deliberately choose to skip a drug test once they have been notified.

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Whereabouts rule

An athlete has to provide WADA or local agents with information about his or her location constantly to allow for testing, whether randomly or planned. In the event an athlete misses three tests in the span of 12 months, he or she has committed a doping violation.

This is what Amusan has been charged with. In her statement, Amusan admitted that she missed a test but explained that she still provided those drug tests immediately after.

"I am a CLEAN athlete. I am tested regularly by AIU. I was tested within days of my third missed test. I have faith that this will be resolved in my favour."

Possible punishments for Amusan

If found guilty, a whereabouts charge carries up to two years suspension, which can be reduced to one year depending on the athlete's degree of fault, as Reuters reports.

If the suspension drags on, Amusan is at risk of failing to line up in Budapest next month and could also see her sit out of next year's Paris Olympics.

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Other forms of anti-doping violation include tampering with the process, trafficking or attempted trafficking, and possession of prohibited substances, among others.

Amusan's profile and brilliant 2022 season

The 26-year-old rose to become an athletics royalty last year at the World Championships in Oregon when she smashed the 100m women's world record to 12.12 seconds in the semifinals. She then lowered it further to 12.06 in the finals, but that time was never recorded due to a wind reading of 2.6m/s, which is past the legal mark.

After a slow start to her 2023 season, Amusan finally hit her stride in subsequent commotions and she is currently the second-fastest woman this year behind her main rival and Olympic champion Jasmine Camacho-Quinn, as reported by Sports Brief.