Judoka Rafaela Silva, in Tokyo on August 27, 2019. -
Tetsuya Kikumasa
The blow is hard for Rafaela Silva because, with this decision, she will not be able to defend her title at the Olympic Games in Tokyo this summer.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Monday rejected the appeal of the Brazilian judoka, the reigning Olympic champion, suspended for two years for a positive doping control last year.
Fenoterol tested positive
Silva, crowned in the under 57 kg category at the Rio Olympics in 2016, had tested positive for fenoterol, a product used in particular for the treatment of asthma, on August 9, 2019 during the Pan American Games.
She had received a two-year suspension from the International Judo Federation.
This sanction was confirmed on appeal on January 22.
The judoka, who has always proclaimed her innocence, claimed to have been accidentally contaminated during the Pan American Games following contact with her roommate or with supporters.
She also said that one of the hypotheses was that the substance had been passed on to her from a baby, the daughter of a friend, who was using asthma products.
A model in Brazil
Rafaela Silva, 28, who grew up in the City of God, the famous favela of Rio de Janeiro, won his biggest titles at home, at the Worlds-2013 and the Olympics-2016.
Thanks to her victories, she had become a symbol of success for the populations of difficult neighborhoods.
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