Hackett's provisional suspension lifted by NAAA panel
Semoy Hackett is expected to compete at this weekend’s NAAA Sagicor General/NGC National Open Track and Field Championships, at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port of Spain.
Hackett tested positive for the banned stimulant Methylhexaneamine, at the 2012 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships, in Iowa, USA. She was later handed a provisional suspension by an NAAA (National Association of Athletics Administrations) disciplinary panel.
As a result of the positive test, Hackett was disqualified, and her school, Louisiana State University (LSU), had to forfeit the NCAA women’s team title. The LSU sprinter lost her 100m bronze medal and LSU lost the 4x100m gold Hackett had helped them earn. Hackett’s 200m result was also voided. She had finished fifth in the final.
However, the disciplinary panel, chaired by NAAA first vice president George Comissiong, lifted the provisional suspension and took no further action against Hackett. The panel also included NAAA president Ephraim Serrette, secretary Allan Baboolal and assistant secretary Dexter Voisin, as well as sports lawyer Tyrone Marcus and sports doctor Anyl Gopeesingh.
Hackett and her legal representatives appeared before the disciplinary panel in April. Following that hearing, the panel met twice, before handing down its decision in May.
“The panel,” Marcus told the Express, yesterday, “carefully weighed case law precedent from the CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sport) in which similar circumstances existed, and based on that process, the panel felt compelled to lift the suspension.”
The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) has since asked the panel for documentation in support of its decision, in order to consider if an appeal to the CAS is warranted in the Hackett case.
Marcus explained that the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has been notified that a decision has been arrived at, and that it has been forwarded to the IAAF.
While she awaits the IAAF’s next move, Hackett is free to compete, and is listed among the starters in the National Championship women’s 100 metres and 200m events.
Hackett has been drawn in the third of four heats for the opening round of the century, this evening.
Last year’s positive test was the second for Hackett for Methylhexaneamine. On August 13, 2011, the Tobago sprinter tested positive for the stimulant at the National Track and Field Championships, at the Crawford Stadium. She served a six-month ban, from September 16, 2011 to March 16, 2012.
At the London Olympics, last August, Hackett finished eighth in the women’s 200m final.