Seven Hockey Players Accuse Coach of Forcing Them to Take Unknown Substance
A story of seven hockey players being suspended for doping has taken a new twist. The seven, all members of Ufa Tolpar, which is the junior team for Salavat Yulaev of the KHL, are alleging that a coach forced them to take unknown substances under threats of ruining their careers.
The seven players were caught with banned substances in their systems in February and April of this year. Court documents now show the allegations against the coach.
"According to the source, the athletes said that suspicious supplements and injections were prescribed to them by the physical training coach. According to them, they tried to resist, but the coach threatened them with complaints to the team director and career problems. The team management did not intervene in the situation, believing that the physical training coach knows better. - Championat.com
The testing showed the players had taken Meldonium, a drug used to reduce restrictions of blood flow to certain parts of the body. It's been banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency since 2016, as it can be used as a metabolic modulator, changing how some hormones accelerate or slow down enzymatic reactions in the body. No word on whether charges will be laid against Igor Zagretdinov. The players insisted they never signed on for the drugs and that Zagretdinov had a conflict with the team's doctor for undisclosed reasons.
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