The doping scandal which has engulfed Georgian rugby has seen their former captain Merab Sharikadze banned for 11 years as part of severe sanctions handed out by World Rugby.
A joint investigation by World Rugby and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) discovered a scheme involving alleged sample substitution and advance warnings of drug tests.
Dubbed ‘Operation Obsidian’, the investigation was launched in 2023 and found five instances where players allegedly swapped urine samples to avoid detection.
On Tuesday, the punishments handed out were revealed with Sharikadze receiving the longest ban.
Georgia’s former chief medical officer Nutsa Shamatava has also been banned from rugby for nine years.
Georgia’s Merab Sharikadze has been banned for 11 years under ‘Operation Obsidian’
In March, after a long investigation, World Rugby – the game’s governing body – described Georgia as running ‘an orchestrated scheme involving recreational drugs and sample substitution.’
They said players were being tipped off by the Georgian anti-doping authorities about upcoming drugs tests. Sharikadze won 105 caps for Georgia and led them to a famous win over Wales in Cardiff in 2022.
He is now an MMA wrestler and is one of six Georgian players banned, with sanctions ranging from his 11 years down to nine months.
More to follow.