2006 Olympic Bronze Medalist in the sprint, Alena Sidko (RUS) has tested positive for EPO and has been banned by the Russian Ski Federation for two years.
The positive test was taken following a Russian FIS in Krasnogorsk on the 26th of December.
Sidko has been “Red-flagged” by the FIS, meaning she is ineligible to start. The FIS declined to comment, responding to FasterSkier’s request for comment: “With regard to your request, we have to refer you to the Russian Ski Association in order to gain further information. FIS has no further information to provide at this stage.”
The matter is being handled entirely by the Russian Ski Federation and the FIS red flag is due to the Russian ban.
Earlier today, Federation Vice President, Vladimir Loginov, told reporters that he knew nothing of a positive test. But later in the day he received word of the positive A-sample.
“We decided to act quickly,” Loginov said. The Federation apparently received a written explanation from Sidko who declined to have her B sample tested. The Ski Federation immediately instituted a two-year ban.
The testing was handled by the World Anti-Doping Agency. Analysis was initially performed at the WADA accredited Rossiyskom Anti-Doping Center in mid-January and confirmed at another WADA accredited anti-doping laboratory in Barcelona, Spain.
Sidko had not been named to the Russian Olympic team. On the 23rd, the day the team was named, head coach Yuri Charkovsky stated that her exclusion was due to “excess weight.”
![Alena Sidko (RUS) on the podium after winning the bronze medal in the 2006 Olympic sprint.](http://images.fasterskier.com/2010/01/sidko.jpg" "Alena Sidko (RUS) on the podium after winning the bronze medal in the 2006 Olympic sprint.")
