The coach, who previously worked for an elite Swedish football club, faces charges under Sweden's doping laws. According to multiple reports, the coach has left his job at the club since the incident. A urine test also showed the presence of anabolic steroids in his system, major media outlets reported.
The coach claims he was unsure whether Oxanabol is illegal in Sweden, according to sources close to the case. The prosecutor is seeking a fine as a penalty, and the case will be decided without a main hearing, the same sources said.
For years we have had a system where we regularly review all doping convictions outside of sports, in accordance with Sweden's doping law, to see if any of the people convicted of doping have any connection to Swedish sports.
The case comes amid broader challenges for doping control in Sweden. Antidoping Sweden can no longer routinely receive personal data of doping offenders from police or customs due to data protection laws and a Supreme Court ruling known as the Lexbase case, major media have reported. The organization now receives documents with personal data removed, hampering its ability to identify doping cases connected to sports.
"For years we have had a system where we regularly review all doping convictions outside of sports, in accordance with Sweden's doping law, to see if any of the people convicted of doping have any connection to Swedish sports," said Christine Helle, CEO of Antidoping Sweden, in a press conference. "Now it has become much more difficult."
Now it has become much more difficult.
Jessica Wissman, Head of Legal at Antidoping Sweden, added: "For most others, it is not important who committed a crime, but what the conclusion of the decision is. But for us, it is absolutely crucial to be able to see who the person is and whether they also have a connection to sports." She noted that doping offenses are often included in more serious charges and buried in the "miscellaneous" part of investigations, which they are not allowed to see.
The data restrictions have implications for how doping cases are handled. Within organized sports, only active athletes can be suspended for doping themselves; support persons like coaches can be suspended only if they supplied prohibited substances, major media reported. This means that in many cases, support persons may escape suspension even if they are convicted of doping. Additionally, in many doping cases outside organized sports, the person also commits a more serious crime, and the prosecutor may include the doping offense in the more serious charge, so doping is not mentioned in the verdict. This could lead to underreporting of doping cases, as the specific offense is not recorded separately.
We have great understanding that Sweden must of course comply with EU decisions, but we are now missing out on a very good opportunity to check if any of those convicted of doping in Sweden outside of sports have a connection to sports.
It remains unclear which specific Allsvenskan club employed the coach, whether he supplied steroids to players, or why he left the club. The exact date of the search and arrest has not been disclosed. Antidoping Sweden has not estimated how many doping cases are missed due to the new data restrictions.
For most others, it is not important who committed a crime, but what the conclusion of the decision is. But for us, it is absolutely crucial to be able to see who the person is and whether they also have a connection to sports.
But it is included in the so-called 'slask' (miscellaneous) of the investigation, and we are not allowed to see that.