Report: Real Madrid's Ramos failed drug test after UCL final vs. Juventus
Sergio Ramos reportedly failed a doping test after Real Madrid's triumph over Juventus in the 2017 Champions League final.
The latest revelation from Football Leaks claims the Spanish defender provided a urine sample after the award ceremony in Wales, which was turned over to the Seibersdorf laboratory in Vienna, Austria where it was later revealed that Ramos had tested positive for dexamethasone.
According to Friday's report from Der Spiegel, dexamethasone is "a cortisone preparation that has an anti-inflammatory effect in addition to relieving pain. It also increases cognition and concentration and can have a euphoric effect. And it is on the list kept by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) of substances that are prohibited in competition."
While administering dexamethasone before matches is permitted under WADA rules, it's imperative that team doctors disclose its use. Otherwise, it's considered a suspected case of doping if traces are found.
The discovery of the failed sample was never made public and the case file remains classified at UEFA's headquarters, according to Der Spiegel.
Ramos was never disciplined. He was, however, contacted by a member of UEFA's anti-doping unit and was asked to provide an explanation in July 2017.
The player replied on July 10, addressing the UEFA employee by her first name. It was a brief statement of just four lines. The Real Madrid team doctor, he wrote, had treated him on the day before the game. All additional details, he noted, were elucidated in an attached 'medical report' that the doctor had prepared. "I hope this fully clarifies the situation," Ramos concluded.
The substance was never listed on the doping control form. Instead, it was noted he received an injection in his knee and shoulder which contained another banned substance, Celestone Chronodose.
Ramos' doctor took the blame for injecting the defender with dexamethasone and mistakingly noting it as Celestone Chronodose as a result of the euphoria he experienced after winning the Champions League.
Dr. A explained it was "human error," and Ramos never intended to breach doping rules.
The doctor's statement was apparently well received in UEFA's anti-doping unit. According to the response sent to Sergio Ramos and Real Madrid, the association consulted an "expert" who confirmed that two intravenous injections of 1.2 milliliters of dexamethasone would produce the rough equivalent of the dexamethasone concentration found in the sample of the player's urine. UEFA took note of the club's explanation. It was "very likely" that the player and the doctor had committed "an administrative mistake."
UEFA eventually closed the case but urged Ramos and Dr. A to use more caution in the future.
Real Madrid issued a statement, responding to Der Spiegel's report:
With regards to the reports published by Der Spiegel in relation to our captain, Sergio Ramos, the club wishes to express the following:
1. Sergio Ramos has never breached anti-doping regulations.
2. UEFA requested specific information and immediately closed the case referred to, as is customary in such instances, following tests carried out by experts from the World Anti-Doping Association (WADA) and UEFA itself.
3. In terms of the rest of the content published by the aforementioned publication, the club will not be making any comment, given the clearly insubstantial nature of the reports.