Summer Olympics

Why a Canadian pole vaulter was allowed in Rio Games despite testing positive for cocaine

Published Nov. 15, 2016 2:12 p.m. ET

Allyssa Lee

Despite testing positive for cocaine after winning the Canadian Olympic trials in July, pole vaulter Shawn Barber was still allowed to compete at the Rio Summer Games because authorities determined that he had inadvertently ingested the substance by kissing a woman he had solicited for a sexual encounter on Craigslist.

The Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada released their decision on Thursday.

In the report, the 22-year-old Barber testified that he had solicited a woman in the "casual encounter" section on Craigslist as “a way to relieve stress” on July 8, the night before the trials. He had specifically requested a woman who was disease and drug free. The woman also testified, admitted that she had taken the drug prior to their meeting.

On Aug. 11, the panel determined that Barber "did not know or suspect, and could not have reasonably known or suspected ... that he was at risk of ingesting a prohibited substance by kissing" the woman — "nor that she could possibly contaminate him with a prohibited substance."

Barber was stripped of his 2016 Canadian title but was not suspended, which made him eligible to compete in Rio. He ended up finishing a disappointing 10th at the Games.

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