PE triathlete aims to clear her name after banning

TOP Port Elizabeth triathlete Mariette Hattingh is determined to clear her name after receiving a two-year ban for testing positive for banned substances in January.

Hattingh, 49, was banned from all official competitions this month when an SA Institute for Drug-Free Sport (SAIDS) anti-doping disciplinary hearing ruled her guilty after the substances clenbuterol and phentermine were found in her system following the Ironman SA 70.3 event in East London in January.

Hattingh, of Lovemore Heights, has been a top contender in her age group in the annual Ironman SA race and last year she was the fourth South African woman overall home in the event in PE.

Yesterday, Hattingh said she had appealed against the decision and was awaiting developments.

She could not comment in detail on the SAIDS decision. "An appeal was lodged by my lawyers by the given date," Hattingh said.

"Also, the press report by TSA [Triathlon SA] of my being banned was released prematurely and not 100% accurate."

A release on the TSA website said Hattingh had been banned from June 27 this year. In fact, the ban is from April 1 until March 30 2016.

"I am innocent of taking banned substances knowingly and I have written proof of that," she said.

"I have nothing to say until the outcome of the appeal.

Hattingh received strong support from training partner Terry Thornton, a former EP middle-distance runner who is now a top triathlete.

"I thought that when they found a contaminated substance in the legal supplement, it would be okay, but they never saw it that way at all," Thornton said. "I have been training with Mariette for five years and you get to know someone's thought patterns.

"We have often spoken about cheating in our sport, whether it be drafting on a bicycle or drugs, and we are dead against it. So it floored me when she was found guilty."

In the SAIDS hearing, Hattingh raised concerns about a number of instances which she considered illegal handling of the B sample.

However, the committee ruled that the testing was valid and compliant with international standards.

In its finding, the committee stated: "To be able to be successful in reducing the period of ineligibility, the athlete needed to address three issues – the identification of the substances, how such substance entered her body and that such substance was not consumed to enhance performance...

"[As she has] failed to meet the requirements, it is the finding of the panel that SAIDS has proved its case. The athlete is found guilty as charged."

However, Hattingh said that in her view she had met all three requirements.

Ironman SA race director Paul Wolff said he hoped Hattingh would be able to clear her name.

"I hope she can provide the reasons to prove she is innocent," Wolff said. "It's a difficult situation and I think we should all refrain from passing judgement until the appeal is completed."

TSA vice-chairman Jan Sterk was reluctant to comment, saying: "We cannot comment other than to say we're always sorry when our discipline of sport is exposed by a SAIDS ruling. We don't know when the appeal will take place; it is in the hands of SAIDS and Wada (World Anti-Doping Agency) to set a date." - Neale Emslie