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After Guerrero’s World Cup ban, union seeks new doping rules

HOOFDDORP, Netherlands — The global footballers’ union wants FIFA’s help to review anti-doping rules after Peru captain Paolo Guerrero was banned from the World Cup for a positive test for cocaine caused by contaminated tea.
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HOOFDDORP, Netherlands — The global footballers’ union wants FIFA’s help to review anti-doping rules after Peru captain Paolo Guerrero was banned from the World Cup for a positive test for cocaine caused by contaminated tea.

FIFPro says a 14-month ban barring the 34-year-old Guerrero from his World Cup debut is “unfair and disproportionate.”

The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling on Monday “defies common sense” to damage Guerrero’s career, FIFPro says.

CAS judges accepted Guerrero did not intend to consume cocaine metabolites, nor enhanced his performance in a World Cup qualifier last October.

Still, the judges applied anti-doping rules requiring a ban of at least one year even when an athlete is not significantly at fault.

FIFPro wants an urgent meeting with FIFA to pursue anti-doping rules that “protect the fundamental rights of players.”

The Associated Press