“I feel very, very bad,” says the Olympic champion. For now, she is suspended after testing positive for Clenbuterol during the Military World Championships.

The 29-year-old says she received the medicine from the military team doctor and claims she is innocent. The case is now being compared to Therese Johaug’s doping case. It could mean the end of the German star’s career.

In a four-minute statement about the positive doping test, Victoria Carl spoke with tears in her eyes. She has ended up in a terrible situation for a top-level athlete.

“I took the medicine on the doctor’s orders. I was not aware that it contained a banned substance,” she says, after suffering from a severe cough during the Military World Championships in Andermatt, Switzerland. Carl received the medicine from the national military team doctor.

Victoria Carl’s despair is evident as she speaks, tears in her eyes, in the nearly four-minute statement about the positive test. She said she suffered from a severe cough during the Military World Championships, which made it difficult for her to sleep.

Also Read: Victoria Carl tests positive for Clenbuterol after taking prescribed medication

The first consequence of the positive test is that the national anti-doping agency has provisionally suspended Carl. This has a direct impact on her preparations for the 2026 Olympics, assuming she is even allowed to compete there. Due to the suspension, Carl must now train alone.

This is only a small comfort: “In nature I can clear my mind and not think about what is still to come,” she told the local newspaper Thüringer Allgemeine.

The medicine she was given is called Spasmo Mucosolvan, and Carl had no idea it contained the banned substance clenbuterol. However, at the same time, it is always the athlete’s responsibility to know what they ingest.

The cough syrup could now become a terrible lesson that, in the worst case, could cost Victoria Carl her entire career. First, the Olympic season may be lost, just as it was for Therese Johaug nine years ago when she tested positive for clostebol.

That substance is also banned, and although the doctor took responsibility, Johaug was suspended for 18 months.

For Therese Johaug, there were many tears and challenging times. Now it is the same for Victoria Carl. She is facing her worst crisis yet as an athlete. And she still does not know what this will lead to.

The German Ski Association (DSV) describes the positive doping test as a regrettable, isolated incident and hopes for a differentiated assessment from the national anti-doping agency (NADA). It arose from an unfortunate combination of organizational and medical circumstances. From DSV’s perspective, the athlete had no intention of cheating.

“Victoria Carl is currently facing potential consequences for which she is not medically responsible. A ban, especially in view of the Olympic Games, would in our opinion neither be fair nor proportionate,” said Stefan Schwarzbach, head of communications at DSV, to Thüringer Allgemeine.

The German military acknowledged the treating doctor’s mistake and referred to it as a human error. But Victoria Carl must bear the consequences entirely on her own.

“I sincerely hope that the circumstances will be investigated and judged fairly,” said Victoria Carl, who comes from SC Motor Zella-Mehlis in Thuringia, adding that all her doping tests until now have been negative: “I am a clean athlete.”

What is Clenbuterol?

Clenbuterol is a medication used to treat asthma. It has fallen into disrepute due to its illegal use in calf fattening in Europe and as a doping agent. According to expert Fritz Sörgel, Clenbuterol causes the airways to expand, making breathing easier. It also stimulates fat burning and slows muscle loss under heavy exertion.

Also Read – Victoria Carl’s coach: “Of course it affects the team”

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