Russian swimmer faces provisional doping ban

The ruling body of international swimming FINA has handed Russian swim star Yulia Efimova a provisional suspension after she tested positive for a banned drug in an out-of-competition doping control test. "Following the results management process and in accordance with the FINA Doping Code rule, the federation executive decided to impose a provisional suspension on the athlete until a hearing before the FINA Doping Panel can be made," the federation official site stated. "The provisional suspension started on January 21, 2014." Russian press reports last week said that the A sample, which the 21-year-old swimmer gave for testing in October, contained the banned steroid Dehydroepiandrosterone, which is also known as DHEA. A London Olympics bronze medalist and three-time world champion, Efimova, who set breaststroke short course world records at 50m and 200m distances, is currently coached by the American specialist David Salo (University of Southern California). Another Russian swimmer Sergei Makkov was also provisionally suspended after testing positively for another banned medication - Ostarine. His provisional ban starts on January 20, 2014. Source: AFP