Rebecca Passler, an Italian biathlete who successfully appealed a doping suspension, will not compete in the Winter Olympics despite being cleared. The 24-year-old athlete claimed contamination occurred through a shared spoon used by her cancer-fighting mother.
MILAN – Despite winning her appeal against doping charges, Italian biathlete Rebecca Passler will miss the Winter Olympics after team officials chose not to include her in the women’s relay squad.
Italy’s national anti-doping organization (NADO) ruled in Passler’s favor last week, reversing a temporary ban that stemmed from testing positive for Letrozole on January 26.
The 24-year-old athlete explained in her appeal that cross-contamination likely occurred when she used a spoon to eat Nutella for breakfast the morning before her drug test. Passler lives with her mother, who takes Letrozole as part of her breast cancer treatment.
Although Passler returned to team training on Monday following her successful appeal, team leader Klaus Hoellrigl did not include her in the four-woman relay team selected for Wednesday’s competition.
The Italian Winter Sports Federation (FISI) announced that Hannah Auchentaller, Dorothea Wierer, Michela Carrara and Lisa Vittozzi will comprise the relay team instead.
The women’s relay represented Passler’s sole qualifying event for the Milano Cortina Games.
Italy celebrated its first biathlon gold medal on Sunday when Vittozzi captured victory in the 10km pursuit race.
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