‘Papu’ Gomez on doping case: "I took a spoonful of my little son's syrup"

Demanding an explanation. Difficult days are looming for Alejandro 'Papu' Gómez, who has been suspended for two years from any sports activity after testing positive for the substance Terbutaline, prohibited in sports. That's why the Argentinean footballer broke his silence to clarify the origin of this element. The athlete will seek to appeal against this sanction that, at 35 years of age, could lead to the end of his professional career.

"The alleged offense is due to the presence of Terbutaline in my body as a result of mistakenly and accidentally ingesting a spoonful of my young son's cough syrup for relief of cough symptoms. It should be noted that the therapeutic use of Terbutaline is allowed for athletes and it does not enhance athletic performance in football," reads the statement.

This version had been reported a few days ago by the newspaper Olé. 'Papu' stated that he had ingested the syrup in order to alleviate a cough in November 2022, when he was part of Sevilla. The player, according to confirmation from the same media, learned of this situation hours before the Argentina-France final in the 2022 World Cup in Qatar when he was injured in an ankle, preventing him from playing since the round of 16 against the Australian national team.

The footballer was not part of the Monza team from Italy (his current team) in Sunday's defeat against AS Roma (0-1). For now, it is still unknown what decision he will make regarding his career if his lawyers' appeal is unsuccessful.

What is Terbutaline?

Terbutaline is a medication classified as a beta-2 agonist, belonging to the family of bronchodilators. Its main function is to expand the airways, which facilitates better blood circulation and increased exercise capacity for those who use it. It also contributes to faster recovery after physical activities.

This substance is commonly prescribed by doctors to prevent and treat conditions such as asthma, chronic bronchitis, and emphysema, which can cause wheezing, difficulties in breathing, and shortness of breath. The medication is taken orally and is only available at pharmacies with a medical prescription.

Regarding this, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) considers all beta-2 agonists, including Terbutaline, as specific substances prohibited for athletes. Other medications that fall into this category include arformoterol, fenoterol, formoterol, higenamine, indacaterol, levosalbutamol, olodaterol, procaterol, reproterol, salbutamol, salmeterol, tretoquinol, tulobuterol, and vilanterol.

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