The Ski Classics series punished Ari Luusua, a Finnish skier caught doping, with the highest possible fines.
15:38 • Updated 3:47 PM
The Ski Classics series is a Finnish skier To Ari Luusua giant fines. Luusua, who skied in the series, was caught in a doping test last summer. News of the four-year ban came to light on Monday.
Luusua, 34, will have to pay a fine of 100,000 euros for the Ski Classics series. The amount of the fine is the maximum that the series can impose. The fine is based on the athlete’s contract for the series.
The Ski Classics series focuses on longer trips than the World Cross Country Cup. Luusua was ranked in the top three in two races in the series.
The doping sample provided by Luusua on July 20, 2021 outside the competition contained substances prohibited in sports.
The Finnish Center for Ethics in Sport says that a metabolite of drostanolone and meldonium were found in a doping sample from Luusua.
Luusua was informed of a positive test result on August 27, 2021 and was placed under a temporary ban on operating the sport.
The Anti-Doping Disciplinary Committee issued its decision on the case on March 1, 2022, after which Luusua appealed the decision to the Sports Judicial Security Committee.
Luusua’s appeal didn’t go through and he was sentenced to a four-year ban from operating the sport.
The ban will end on August 26, 2025.
Last September, Ari Luusua publicly said that he was ending his skiing career.