Welsh Rugby Union player Caine Rees-Jones receives three-year ban for Anti-Doping Rule Violations
Welsh Rugby Union player Caine Rees-Jones has received a three-year ban from sport following Anti-Doping Rule Violations (ADRVs) for the Presence and Use of a Prohibited Substance.
On 26 March 2024, UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) collected an Out-of-Competition urine Sample from Mr Rees-Jones at a Llanelli Wanderers training session. Analysis of Mr Rees-Jones’ Sample returned Adverse Analytical Findings (AAFs) for the exogenous origin of testosterone and its Metabolites 5α-androstane-3α, 17β-diol (‘5aAdiol’); 5β-androstane-3α,17β-diol (‘5βAdiol’); Androsterone; and Etiocholanolone.
Testosterone is listed under section S1.1 of the 2024 World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Prohibited List as an anabolic androgenic steroid. It is a non-Specified Substance which, when administered exogenously, is prohibited in sport at all times.
UKAD notified Mr Rees-Jones that he may have committed ADRVs for the Presence and Use of a Prohibited Substance and provisionally suspended him. Mr Rees-Jones admitted the ADRVs stating that he took testosterone for aesthetic reasons unrelated to sport performance.
On 9 July 2024, UKAD charged Mr Rees-Jones with the commission of ADRVs for the Presence and Use of a Prohibited Substance. Mr Rees-Jones admitted the ADRVs and accepted the asserted period of Ineligibility within twenty days of the Charge Letter. In accordance with ADR Article 10.8.1, Mr Rees-Jones was therefore able to reduce the asserted four-year period of Ineligibility to three years.
Mr Rees-Jones’ ban is deemed to have commenced on 18 June 2024 (the date of the Provisional Suspension) and will expire at 11.59pm on 17 June 2027.
Notes
Technical terms and more information
Please note, unless otherwise indicated or the context otherwise requires, capitalised terms used in this announcement have the meaning given to them in the UK Anti-Doping Rules and/or World Anti-Doping Code.
Prompt resolution of cases
The starting sanction for Presence and Use of a Prohibited Substance in this case is four years. Under the UK Anti-Doping Rules, there is an article that allows for a one year reduction if the athlete admits the violation and accepts the sanction with 20 days of receiving the Charge Letter. Caine Rees-Jones was able to qualify for this one-year reduction.
Testosterone analysis
Analysis of testosterone follows procedures set out in the World Anti-Doping Agency‘s International Standard for Laboratories and Technical Document for the Measurement and Reporting of
