Imogen Simmonds cleared doping test intimate contact
Swiss triathlete Imogen Simmonds has been cleared of wrongdoing after testing positive for the banned substance ligandrol, following her argument that the trace found in her system came from intimate contact with her partner rather than intentional doping. In an out-of-competition test conducted on December 8, 2024, the 31-year-old athlete returned an adverse analytical finding for a metabolite of ligandrol.
Simmonds revealed that she had submitted to hair-sample analyses for herself and her long-term partner. Her hair sample returned negative for ligandrol, while her partner’s returned positive. She asserted that intimate relations took place both on the day and the day before the test, and concluded that “the transfer of bodily fluid” via her partner who allegedly took the substance without her knowledge explained the result.
After a process of results management, the International Testing Agency (ITA) on October 24, 2025 accepted a finding of “No Fault or Negligence” for Simmonds, meaning she was not sanctioned and is free to resume competition with immediate effect.
The case raises important questions for anti-doping protocols, since under the World Anti‑Doping Agency (WADA) Code athletes are strictly liable for any prohibited substance found in their bodies, regardless of fault or intention. Yet, in very rare cases including this one a defence of contamination via intimate contact has been accepted.
Simmonds described the ordeal as devastating to her identity and career, noting that the detected amount of ligandrol was picogram-level (which she likened to “a dash of salt in an Olympic-size swimming pool”) and that two other tests one six days before, one 22 days later returned negative.
As the matter is now concluded from the ITA’s standpoint, Simmonds can compete again. She will continue advocating for awareness of contamination risks for clean athletes and cautions others about “unexpected ways of transmission.”
