Entire junior team tests positive for banned substance as investigation continues

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Josh Tupper
August 31, 2023 (10:39)

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Doping in hockey has always been a story, but it's not something that is commonly documented. However, it was recently revealed that 7 players from Tolpar Ufa, the junior team of the KHL's Salavat Yulaev Ufa, tested positive for a banned substance.

While 7 players is already a lot, additional testing revealed the issue runs much deeper. According to an additional report, all members of the team were sent for testing at a private clinic following the original positive results. What the results revealed was extremely shocking as it turned out that every single playing member of the hockey team tested positive. As well as the team some of the staff members with the team also tested positive.

"The management of the Ufa club sent the entire team to a private clinic to take tests - as a result, banned drugs were found in all hockey players, except for the injured, who did not play. Doping was found even in a technician, a masseur and a serviceman." - Sport24.ru

The local Anti-Doping Agency also tested 10 players following the initial positive tests, but the results have not yet been updated. The substance found is Meldonium, which has been banned since 2016 by the Anti-Doping Agency. The substance is a metabolic modulator, changing how some hormones accelerate or slow down enzymatic reactions in the body.

A recent report from Championat cited a source as saying the seven players who first tested positive have places the blame on a training coach with the team, who allegedly threatened to have their careers derailed if they did not take the injections.