U Sports Soccer Athlete Suspended for the Presence of Cannabis

CCES – (Ottawa, Ontario – January 10, 2017) – The Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES) announced today that Joren Ramsay-Marshall, a U Sports soccer player from Wilfrid Laurier University, received a sanction of two months for an anti-doping rule violation. The athlete’s urine sample, collected during in-competition doping control on August 27, 2016, revealed the presence of cannabis in excess of the threshold stated in the World Anti-Doping Agency Prohibited List.

The presence of cannabis, classified as a “specified substance” on the Prohibited List, is considered an adverse analytical finding when the urinary concentration exceeds 150 ng/mL. Under the rules of the Canadian Anti-Doping Program (CADP), an athlete facing a first violation involving a “specified substance” can seek to have the sanction reduced to a reprimand. Based on CCES’ assessment of the athlete’s degree of fault, the CCES proposed a two-month period of ineligibility.

In response to the CCES’ notification of the adverse analytical finding, Mr. Ramsay-Marshall waived his right to a hearing, acknowledged the anti-doping rule violation, and accepted a two-month sanction (which ended November 26, 2016). The athlete, who resides in Waterloo, Ontario, was ineligible to participate in any capacity with any sport signatory to the CADP, including training with teammates, during the sanction period.

In compliance with rule 7.10 of the CADP, a copy of the file outcome summary can be found at http://cces.ca/wp-content/uploads/files/content/docs/pdf/file-outcome-summary-ramsay-marshall-e.pdf.  

The CCES is an independent, national, not-for profit organization with a responsibility to administer the CADP. Under the CADP rules, the CCES announces publicly every anti-doping rule violation. We recognize that true sport can make a great difference for individuals, communities and our country. We are committed to working collaboratively to activate a values-based and principle-driven sport system; protecting the integrity of sport from the negative forces of doping and other unethical threats; and advocating for sport that is fair, safe and open to everyone.

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