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Canada’s equestrian team has been denied its spot at the upcoming 2020 Tokyo Olympics due to a doping violation involving one of the riders, Nicole Walker. The 26-year-old tested positive for Benzoylecgonine, a metabolite of the banned substance, cocaine.
According to Reuters, the International Federation for Equestrian Sports (FEI) provisionally suspended Walker from the event after a urine sample taken from her on the day of the team final at the recent 2019 Pan Am Games tested positive for Benzoylecgonine.
Walker was a part of the Canadian equestrian team that finished in the fourth spot in the team event at this year’s Pan Am Games. The strong performance in that event had ensured qualification for the upcoming 2020 Tokyo Olympics Games.
Walker blames coca tea for drug test failure
Earlier this week, Walker announced that she had filed an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) to challenge the FEI’s decision that barred her and the Canadian equestrian team from competing in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
In a statement, Walker said that her priority, for now, is to continue to fight for the Canadian equestrian team and that her team deserves a shot in the upcoming Olympics. Walker explained that she inadvertently ingested the banned substance by drinking coca tea during the equestrian event in Peru.
The coca plant, which is grown as a cash crop in Peru and primarily used in making coca tea, is best known for its psychoactive alkaloids, which can be chemically extracted to concoct a banned substance, cocaine. Drinking coca tea is reportedly legal in some South American countries, including Peru, where it is considered a cure to altitude sickness.
Walker had a December 4th hearing with the Pan American Sports disciplinary commission, which disqualified Walker’s results in both the individual and team events. Walker’s results were replaced with those of Canadian team member Lisa Carlsen.
As a result of Walker’s disqualification, the Canadian equestrian team dropped three spots to seventh place, losing out on a berth in the Olympics.
The Canadian team’s spot in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics has been reallocated to Argentina, who originally finished fifth in the recent 2019 Pan American Games in Peru.
