Triathlon athlete Imogen Simmonds expressed immense relief after being cleared of a doping violation despite testing positive for a banned substance. The 32-year-old was initially suspended by the International Testing Agency (ITA) earlier this year for testing positive for ligandrol, a prohibited muscle-enhancing drug.
According to the ITA, ligandrol is a banned substance that boosts muscle growth and physical performance, both in and out of competition. However, Simmonds has been given the green light to resume competition following a ruling of ‘no guilt or negligence’ after a thorough investigation.
In a social media post, Simmonds shared her relief over the verdict, attributing the presence of ligandrol in her urine sample to inadvertent contamination through intimate contact with her partner, who unknowingly used supplements containing the prohibited substance.
The ITA confirmed that Simmonds was not at fault for the doping violation and has lifted any period of ineligibility, allowing her to compete immediately as no competitive results were affected by the out-of-competition sample. While the decision can be appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, Simmonds is now focused on returning to triathlon competitions.
With 10 career victories to her credit, Simmonds previously ranked seventh in the PTO’s World rankings in 2024 but has since dropped to 124th. Her most recent competition was a fourth-place finish in the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in New Zealand on December 14 of the previous year.