The Egyptian Wushu Kung-Fu Federation issued a statement on Monday in defense of player Mahmoud Atef, who lost the gold medal he won in the 15th World Wushu Championships in Shanghai, China on October.
The International Wushu Federation (IWUF) withdrew Atef’s medal after a sample collected from the player revealed use of a prohibited substance.
The Egyptian federation said that the substance discovered is diuretic, and was only added to the banned substances list as it masks the effects of stimulants. However, this diuretic substance has also been used for slimming and is a necessary drug in dealing with sudden high blood pressure.
Atef underwent testing numerous times, the Egyptian federation said, the last of which came from the Egyptian National Anti-Doping Organization with the rest of the players. Those tests were all negative for performance-enhancing drugs, and confirmed the safety of the players and their coaching staff, with the only substances used for nervous tension or high blood pressure.
The Egyptian federation said that Atef underwent a sudden tests many times, the last of which was by the Egyptian National Anti-Doping Organization (NADO), with the rest of the players, and all proved negative for banned athletic performance-enhancing drugs, and confirmed the safety of the players and their coaching staff, and the reason was limited to receiving medication for tension or high blood pressure.
In the statement, the Egyptian federation wrote that “We had discussed a crisis management plan and sent to the IWUF 24 hours before the end of the grace period, and notified the Youth Ministry at the same time. We were focusing on making the procedures without fuss on media outlets and social media.”
It added that the Egyptian federation sought to provide the documents and evidence absolving Atef, or at least decreasing his suspension to the minimum – allowing him to participate in championships after six months.
