While the Kerry county board has said it’s confident that O’Mahony will be exonerated following a positive test after September’s All Ireland final defeat by Tyrone, the player has been suspended as per the regulations pending an inquiry by the GAA’s anti-doping tribunal.
The 28-year-old three-time All Ireland winner and former All Star, who is a garda based in Cork City, tested positive for the asthma medication Salbutamol, and now has to prove that drug found in his sample was the result of the therapeutic use of an inhaler.
If O’Mahony had informed the authorities of his asthmatic condition – which it is believed he has suffered from since childhood – and if the levels of Salbutamol are consistent with therapeutic use, then it appears likely that he won’t face any serious sanction.
“The player’s asthma has been pre-notified to the Irish Sports Council since the GAA’s anti-doping policy came in a few years ago,” said the Kerry County Board in a statement. “The board and the player are happy to co-operate with the hearing and we are confident the player will be exonerated.”
While Salbutamol is not usually regarded as performance-enhancing in the same way as the blood-boosting drug, EPO, if taken in high doses it can have an anabolic effect.
The Munster and Ireland rugby player, Frankie Sheahan, was initially banned for two years following a positive test for abnormally high levels of Salbutamol in 2003, however, he was later cleared on appeal after it emerged that dehydration had distorted the sample reading.
However, Sheahan was banned for three months and fined because he had failed to fully comply with the notification requirements for the use of an inhaler.
Significantly, as he prepares for the fight to clear his name, O’Mahony has retained the services of solicitor, Paul Derham, who also worked on the Sheahan case.