Anna Fragkou and Six Others Test Positive for Banned Substances

Five athletes tested positive for banned substances during the 2019 CrossFit Games and have received penalties from competition, CrossFit revealed yesterday. Two more athletes failed drug tests at the FitLand Fitness Festival following the Games, with the same consequences.

Amongst them was 9th place CrossFit Games finisher Anna Fragkou, who tested positive for a metabolite of oral turinabol at an in-competition test during the CrossFit Games. The Greek athlete has been suspended for four years.

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Anna Fragkou is a four-times Regionals athlete and has been crowned Fittest Woman in Greece five years running. The 2019 CrossFit Games were her first.

THE TRICKY PART

Clause 14 of the 2019 Drug Testing Program:

“Should an athlete violate the Drug Policy during live competition, the athlete’s scores from the competition will be removed from the Leaderboard and his or her rankings will display a DQ. Any athletes ranked below the disqualified athlete will move up in the overall rankings. CrossFit Inc. will not re-sort or re-calculate the rankings as if the athlete never competed. All event scores and event rankings will remain the same.”

On paper, this means Thuri Helgadottir will officially be ranked 9th and Danielle Brandon enters the Top 10. However, with the new changes to the structure of the CrossFit Games and the introduction of cuts, if a top 10 athlete fails a drug test the consequences affect more than the final leaderboard. Top 10 athletes got to complete six more workouts than those who got cut, significantly increasing their chances of a pay-out.

The cuts and their broader consequences might have to be rethought for future events.

First Public Failed Drug Test from the 2019 CrossFit Games

CROSSFIT GAMES FAILED DRUG TESTS

Katie Trombetta, Franky Wood, Achilleas Pantazis, Anna Fragkou and Hylie Thompson were all found to be in breach of CrossFit’s drug policy during the 2019 CrossFit Games.

• Katie Trombetta, 44^th-ranked individual at the 2019 Games – Tested positive for metabolites of GW1516 and ostarine. GW1516 is in the class of hormone and metabolic modulators. Ostarine is classified as an anabolic agent. The test was administered on July 29, 2019, at the CrossFit Games. The appeals process has concluded. Trombetta is suspended for four years.
• Franky Wood, 87^th-ranked individual at the 2019 Games– Tested positive for 3-hydroxy-4-methoxytamoxifen, a metabolite of tamoxifen. Tamoxifen is classified as a hormone and metabolic modulator. The sample also tested positive for intact human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) is in the class of peptide hormones, growth factors, related substances, and mimetics. The test was administered on July 29, 2019, at the CrossFit Games. The appeals process has concluded. Wood is suspended for four years.
• Achilleas Pantazis, 126^th-ranked individual at the 2019 Games – Tested positive for GW1516 sulfoxide and GW1516 sulfone, metabolites of GW1516. GW1516 is in the class of hormone and metabolic modulators. The test was administered on July 29, 2019, at the CrossFit Games. The appeals process has concluded. Pantazis is suspended for two years due to a contaminated supplement.
• Anna Fragkou, 9^th-ranked individual at the 2019 Games– Tested positive for a metabolite of oral turinabol (4-chloro-18-nor-17β-hydroxymethyl,17α-methyl-5α-androst-13-en-3α-ol). Oral turinabol is in the class of anabolic agents. The test was administered on Aug. 2, 2019, at the CrossFit Games. The appeals process has concluded. Fragkou is suspended for four years.
• Hylie Thompson, 4^th-ranked Masters 55-59 at the 2019 Games– Tested positive for GW1516 sulfoxide and GW1516 sulfone, metabolites of GW1516. GW1516 is in the class of hormone and metabolic modulators. The test was administered on Aug. 4, 2019, at the CrossFit Games. The appeals process has concluded. Thompson is suspended for four years.

Only Achilleas Pantazis’ appeal – Cyprus’ male National Champion – was upheld and he has been suspended for two years instead of four due to a contaminated supplement.

Franky Wood qualified to the CrossFit Games as the Fittest in Honduras and Katie Trombetta finished within the Top 20 during the 2019 Open.

10 Banned PEDs in Crossfit and How They Affect the Human Body

OTHER ATHLETES FOUND IN BREACH OF DRUG POLICY

• Mauro Acevedo, 3^rd-ranked individual in Argentina after the 2019 Open– Tested positive for oral turinabol and its metabolite 6β-OH-Dehydrochloromethyltestosterone. Oral turinabol is in the class of anabolic agents. The sample also contained GW1516 sulfone, a metabolite of GW1516. GW1516 is in the class of hormone and metabolic modulators. The test was administered on Aug. 19, 2019, at the FitLand Fitness Festival. The appeals process has concluded. Acevedo is suspended for four years.
• Juan Sforzini, 16^th-ranked individual in Argentina after the 2019 Open– Tested positive for stanozolol metabolites (4β-hydroxystanozolol and 16β-hydroxystanozolol). Stanozolol is in the class of anabolic agents. The test was administered on Aug. 19, 2019, at the FitLand Fitness Festival. The appeals process has concluded. Sforzini is suspended for four years.