Skier Ari Luusua, 34, gave a positive doping test on July 20, 2021.
Ari Luusua photographed in Rovaniemi in November 2019. Pasi Liesimaa
On Monday, the Sports Law Enforcement Commission released its decision to dismiss Luusua’s complaint, so the skier, who specializes in long distances, was banned from the sport for four years.
– I was a little surprised and relieved when the contract has not been renewed and I am no longer a member of the club, Taivalkoski Metsä-Veikko’s chairman Matti Tyni commented on the decision.
On the FIS athlete page Tauusalkoski’s Metsä-Veikot has been marked as the company of Luusua 85, but the information has become obsolete and the 34-year-old from Rovaniemi was no longer a member of the club when he gave a positive sample.
– We had a one-year contract that ended in May -21, Tyni explains.
Therefore, the club is not going to sanction the athlete for doping.
– If there had been an agreement, yes, we had a clear condition just as it should normally be. But when there is no more agreement, we have no demands and we are not happy to take any position, Tyni says.
Surprise decision
Last September, Luusu surprisingly said on Instagram that he had decided to end his career in June and did not renew his license for the period 2021-2022.
According to the Judicial Security Committee, this did not exclude him from the scope of the Anti-Doping Code, as he had entered into a two-year contract with a Swedish professional team in the spring of 2021.
The board also notes that his actions in June, July and August 2021 showed that he had not withdrawn from competitive sports. In addition, Luusua had not even stated in the doping test situation that he thought he was no longer an athlete.
However, Tyni finds it plausible that Luusua had decided to stop cross-country skiing as early as June.
– Yes, he must have had that idea and I believe Aria completely.
Tyni recalls that Luusua froze his leg quite badly in the winter of 2021.
– He told me it’s a bit of a job for the faint of heart. I had little idea that he was already doing some kind of Jacob wrestling about continuing.
On Instagram, Luusu justified his retirement with a desire to be more with his family.