Triathlon: Gemmell's 15-month ban could soon be quashed

Kris Gemmell competed in the London Olympics in 2012. Picture / Dean Purcell

Retired triathlete Kris Gemmell was yesterday banned from sport for 15 months - but his suspension could be overturned in a matter of weeks.

Gemmell, who raced his last top-level triathlon in 2012, was adjudged by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to have violated anti-doping rules for failing to comply with the athlete whereabouts programme.

Having hinted at a possible dalliance with long-distance triathlon, Gemmell never left the doping-control programme, which requires athletes to regularly log their location so they can be administered "surprise" drug testing.

Gemmell fell afoul of those regulations on three occasions within an 18-month timeframe, beginning after the London Olympics in 2012 and stretching into his retirement.

Drug Free Sport NZ (DFSNZ) took the case to the New Zealand Sports Tribunal this year and, after it was initially dismissed, CAS yesterday released a judgment in which it banned Gemmell from participating in all sport for 15 months.

That ban, however, may not last much longer than a month.

The rules in the programme are set to change on January 1 and the three-strikes transgression period will be reduced to 12 months, meaning Gemmell can apply to the Sports Tribunal to have his suspension overturned.

And if the 37-year-old chooses to pursue that route, according to DFSNZ chief executive Graeme Steel, "he would likely win that argument".

Such an occurrence would lead to questions over why DFSNZ pursued the case to the highest court in international sport, chasing a suspension for a retired athlete that would subsequently be quashed.

But Steel said the ban was more about sending a message to Gemmell's peers than to the triathlete himself.

"We're pleased the way we operate has been validated by CAS.

"This in a sense wasn't about Kris so much as making sure that we were operating properly.

"I guess, in a sense, that Kris was a little bit the meat in the sandwich of that.

"But it did show that he failed to follow the rules and demonstrates that athletes do need to."

Using Gemmell, a two-time Olympian, for that purpose invoked the ire of fellow triathlete Sam Warriner, who tweeted her dismay.

"Sometimes you have to stand by those who've helped you. Gemmell doesn't deserve his exceptional career tarnished by a technicality #NotFair"

Gemmell, now working on the World Triathlon Series, is is Chicago and did not wish to comment.

Any disappointment would be understandable, given he is now unable to compete at any event - no matter how small - under the jurisdiction of a World Anti-Doping Agency signatory.

"Kris will be in the position to apply to the Sports Tribunal and say, 'under the new rules, mine wouldn't have been a violation and therefore my penalty should cease'," Steel said.

"He would likely win that argument. I would imagine, if that's available to him, that he would want to do that."