2009 100 Backstroke World Champion and 2016 Olympic Team Member for Japan, Junya Koga, has tested positive for muscle-building substances after an out-of-competition drug test in March of this year.
According to the Japan Swimming Federation and the The Japan Times, Koga has now lost his ability to compete in the upcoming Japan Open as well as the Asian Games August 18-September 2 in Indonesia.
The organizations said Koga returned traces of androgen receptor modulators LGD-4033 and SARM S-22. The substances are banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency.
Koga said the substance may be found in nutritional substances that he started taking in February of 2018. Otherwise, Koga apologized for his possible mistake:
“I feel ashamed, miserable and frustrated,” the swimmer told a news conference. “I couldn’t believe it — I thought it was some mistake. I didn’t know if it was real, or a dream. I never took the substance detected intentionally. But I’m responsible for proving that. To those who support me, I’m sorry.”
As of May 23, there are no further details as to how long Koga will serve his suspension from the Japan Swimming Federation.
Koga was selected to the 2016 Rio Olympic Team to compete in the 4 x 100 Medley Relay and has a total of seven World Championship medals. His career has also consisted of multiple Asian Records, three Pan Pacific Championship medals and numerous U.S. competitions under Club Wolverine.
The Japan Swimming Federation, the The Japan Times and NHK World-Japan contributed to this report.
Joe Stott ffs