FIFA, the world’s governing body of football, has given Cote d’Ivoire goalkeeper Sylvain Gbohouo an 18-month suspension from all international football activity.
The shot-stopper was suspended by the FIFA Disciplinary Committee due to a doping offence, keeping him out of action until shortly before his nation hosts the 2023 TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations.
The 33-year-old, who competes for Wolkite Ketema of Ethiopia’s top division, will be sidelined until 24 June 2023.
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The decision was made as a result of the goalkeeper’s positive test for the prohibited chemical trimetazidine, who has played 65 times for the Elephants.
“As a result of the presence of the prohibited substance in his sample, the player was found to be in violation of article 6 of the FIFA Anti-Doping Regulations as read in conjunction with article 17 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code,” a FIFA statement released on Monday read.
“The aforementioned suspension period starts on 23 December 2021, the date on which the player was provisionally suspended by the chairman of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee.o
“In line with article 30 of the FIFA Anti-Doping Regulations, the suspension covers, inter alia, all types of matches, including domestic, international, friendly and official fixtures.”
The World Anti-Doping Agency classified the cardiac drug trimetazidine as a stimulant.
Gbohouo was a member of the Cote d’Ivoire team that defeated Ghana in a penalty shootout to win the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea.
The seasoned goalkeeper missed the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon since he was temporarily suspended in December of the previous year.
In his defence, Gbohouo claimed that the Ivorian Football Federation took him to a meeting with an ophthalmologist in March 2021 where he was given a prescription for medication containing trimetazidine (FIF).
Gbohouo’s suspension was reduced from the customary four years for such an offence to two years after FIFA determined that he had unintentionally doped.
After Gbohouo cooperated with the FIFA investigators, the suspension was further shortened by six months.
His suspension was retroactively applied to December 23; he will be allowed to resume playing on June 24, 2023.