World 400-metres champion Salwa Eid Naser has been cleared of committing an anti-doping rule violation after a World Athletics Disciplinary Tribunal dismissed charges brought against her for registering four "whereabouts failures".
The 22-year-old Bahraini runner, who won gold at the World Championships in Doha last year, was charged and provisionally suspended by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) in June.
According to World Athletics Anti-Doping Rules, any combination of three whereabouts failures - filing failures or missed tests - within a 12-month period by an athlete constitutes an anti-doping violation.
Athletes guilty of whereabouts failures could face two-year bans or a minimum of one year depending on the degree of fault.
In Naser's case, the disciplinary tribunal upheld three of the four AIU charges against her - a filing failure effective January 1, 2019 and two missed tests, on March 12 last year and January 24 this year.
However, the tribunal found in Naser's favour with regard to a third alleged missed test on April 12, 2019, which resulted in the charges being dismissed because her three whereabouts failures did not occur within a 12-month rolling period.
"This was a case very much on the borderline and we hope the athlete will learn from the experience and heed the AIU's warnings," the tribunal said in a statement.
Australian Associated Press
