Rugby League player Tom Curwen, of Workington Town, has been banned from sport for a period of 18 months following Anti-Doping Rule Violations (ADRVs) for the Presence and Use of a Prohibited substance.
Mr Curwen’s Sample tested positive for amphetamine, following an In-Competition test. Amphetamine is a non-Specified stimulant and is prohibited In-Competition only.
UKAD notified Mr Curwen that he may have committed ADRVs for the Presence and Use of a Prohibited Substance and provisionally suspended him. In his response, Mr Curwen provided evidence to support his explanation showing he suffered from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and used medication that contained amphetamine to treat his condition.
As an Athlete within the National Therapeutic Use Exemption (TUE) Pool for their sport, Mr Curwen was required to apply for a TUE in advance of taking amphetamine. However, at the time of Sample collection Mr Curwen did not possess a TUE. The Athlete applied retroactively for one, but the application was denied by the UKAD TUE Fairness Review Panel. UKAD therefore charged Mr Curwen with the ADRVs on 28 July 2023.
Mr Curwen admitted the ADRVs but submitted that he bore No Significant Fault or Negligence. Following the exchange of evidence and submissions, the matter was heard before a National Anti-Doping Panel (NADP) tribunal. The NADP tribunal concluded that, while Mr Curwen’s ADRVs were not ‘intentional’, he was at Fault and acted negligently in circumstances where he failed to take steps to investigate whether his medication included a Prohibited Substance or to obtain a TUE prior to taking it. The NADP tribunal therefore imposed an 18-month ban from sport.
Mr Curwen is entitled to credit for the time he spent provisionally suspended, so his ban is deemed to have commenced on 6 April 2023 and will end on 5 October 2024.
The full NADP Decision on Mr Curwen’s case is available to read online.
