[imagesource: Hippopx]

Four young rugby players have recently been slapped with a three-year ban for doping violations.

Three of them are Craven Week players for the annual rugby union tournament organised for SA schoolboys, named after Springbok rugby union player and coach Dr Danie Craven.

These violations were found during the interprovincial school rugby week last year, with two of the player’s names released on the South African Institute for Drug-Free Sports (Saids) website, per News24.

Sifiso Magwaza, who played prop for the Lions, and Khoitsimodimo ‘Kamo’ Mathibedi, who was a hooker for Free State, both tested positive for the physique- and performance-enhancing drug Metandienone metabolite.

For Magwaza – who went to Hoerskool Monument in Krugersdorp and was selected for the South Africa Schools team for a one-off game against South Africa Schools – this means a ban until August 4, 2025.

It also means that he didn’t feature for the South African Schools teams in their matches against England and France as his period of ineligibility dated from August 4 last year when that was in the works.

Mathibedi is also suspended until 2025 on the same date, with his period of ineligibility having dated back to August 22 last year.

He was the second-team hooker at Grey College with a few appearances for the first team, all sidelined now thanks to his doping.

Metandienone metabolite is sold under the brand name Dianabol (D-Bol) and is an affordable androgen and anabolic oral steroid (AAS) medication.

It is currently a controlled substance in the US and UK and remains popular among bodybuilders as it was originally designed to help people build lean muscle and increase strength, notes The Daily:

DBol works by increasing the production of proteins, and essential amino acids which are the building blocks of muscle tissue. It also promotes the storage of glycogen, which is a type of energy that muscles use during exercise.

DBol helps to reduce the amount of fat stored in the body. As a result, it can lead to increased muscle mass and strength, as well as improved athletic performance.

The other player is a minor and so his name was redacted for his legal protection. He tested positive for another substance though, 19-norandrosterone, and has also been banned for three years.

Andre Gerber, a Varsity Cup player in the Nelson Mandela University team, also earned a three-year ban for testing positive for the presence of Oxandrolone metabolites. This was found on September 19 last year and so he will return to the game on the same day in 2025, too.

Eish.

[sources:news24&daily]