Fujitsu and Toyoda Issue Statement on Circumstances of His Two-Year Suspension for Trenbolone

Toyoda was a member of the 2019 Doha World Championships team and holds a best of 48.87. Early in the morning of May 19, 2022, the Japan Anti-Doping Agency (JADA) conducted a doping test of Toyoda. The prohibited substance trenbolone was detected in urine taken during the test, resulting in a two-year suspension that began May 21, 2022. He did not compete at the National Track and Field Championships the next month.

The amount of trenbolone detected in Toyoda’s urine sample was 1.4 ng/ml, well below the minimum analytical precision of 2.5 ng/ml required by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for analytical equipment. As a general rule, if a non-specified prohibited substance such as trenbolone is detected in a sample, the athlete will receive a four-year suspension. Toyoda stated that he had no knowledge of having taken any prohibited substances, and he and his team prepared evidence that the incident was unintentional and was due to contaminated products.

“Unintentional doping” is often due to contaminated supplements. All supplements that Toyoda was taking were sent to a specialized lab for analysis, but no prohibited substances were detected and the route of ingestion could not be determined.

Trenbolone is used in the United States and other countries to fatten beef cattle due to its muscle-building effects, and has been the cause of other positive doping tests due to athletes consuming contaminated meat. It was found that Toyoda had purchased, cooked and eaten beef liver imported from another country shortly before the test, raising the possibility that it was responsible.

But in the final analysis it was not possible to determine precisely how the trenbolone had entered Toyoda’s system. However, given the results of the investigation into his case, the fact that Toyoda’s previous seven tests, including two within six months of the positive test, had returned negative results, and the fact that trenbolone’s effects would not be beneficial to a 400 m hurdler, in January this year the JADA Disciplinary Panel concluded, “While Toyoda was unable to conclusively prove the route of entry of the prohibited substance into his body, taking the facts all together we believe that we have been able to show that his ingestion of the prohibited substance was unintentional.” With that judgment the panel reduced his sentence from four to two years.

In response, JADA filed an appeal on Jan. 25, saying, “The Disciplinary Panel’s determination that Toyoda’s actions were unintentional and its decision to move the start date his suspension a month earlier were both in error.” The Sports Arbitration Panel of the Japan Sports Arbitration Agency heard the case, on Apr. 2 it ruled to dismiss the JADA’s appeal.

Fujitsu’s statement said, “Along with athlete being required to receive regular education, we take a variety of measures to prevent anti-doping violations, including warning athletes on the risks of supplement usage, contaminated foods, and medications prescribed by medical institutions. Although Toyoda’s anti-doping violation was officially determined to have been unintentional, it is truly unfortunate that he committed a violation that resulted in a two-year suspension and we apologize to everyone involved. We take this decision very seriously and will strive to prevent something like it from happening again by reviewing the anti-doping management procedures within our team and improving our education of our athletes on the subject.”

Toyoda thought things were finally settled with the Disciplinary Panel’s ruling in early January, but when JADA filed its appeal, he said, “I really struggled with depression. But right through from the initial notification of the positive result to the Sports Arbitration Panel’s decision, I was able to get through it with the support of my family, friends, mentors and lawyers.”

Toyoda will be eligible to compete again after May 21 this year. “I’m looking forward to getting back into training with a fresh mindset and hope to be back racing as soon as I can after the end of the suspension. There’s not much time, but I still have the chance to qualify for the Paris Olympics. And along with my racing, I’d also like to be involved in anti-doping awareness education so that I can even in the tiniest way reduce the chance of this happening again to someone else.”