Today, the word came from The Netherlands:
SIMON VROEMEN, former European record holder steeple chase, 8.04.95, has been declared fully INNOCENT in both doping charges against him.
In the IV drip case, Vroemen proved with multiple witness statements that his IV drip was according to all rules Wada provides for treating a sick and dehydrated athlete.
The more spectacular innocence came from scientific research, demonstrating that Vroemen did NOT test positiv for steroids, but his test became positive due to his astma medication budenoside.
His urine was proven to be kept 5 days in warm temperatures before the analysis. Moreover, his B test was proven to be negative, and only after manual manipulation by the analist of the doping lab, it was made positive.
With these facts on the table, the doping lab in Cologne will face investigations of fraudulous handling. There are at least 10 more athletes who tested positive for steroids but used the astma medication. It remains to be seen if these are also false positives.
Vroemen does not exclude filing financial claims.He is delighted about his innocence. "This proves that running 8.04 is possible without taking drugs. This must be an encouragement to all western athletes training hard to achieve the same", Vroemen said relieved.