Sport Integrity Australia acknowledges that the Australian Football League (AFL) imposed a one-month period of Ineligibility on athlete Zachary Guadagnin for the Presence of a Prohibited Substance and its metabolite.
Mr Guadagnin, player for West Perth Football Club in the West Australian Football League (WAFL), returned an Adverse Analytical Finding from an In-Competition doping control test at a WAFL match between Claremont and West Perth football clubs on 21 June 2025.
Mr Guadagnin’s sample was analysed at the Australian Sports Drug Testing Laboratory, part of the National Measurement Institute, and the presence of Cocaine and its metabolite Benzoylecgonine were detected.
The substances Cocaine and its metabolite Benzoylecgonine are listed under Class S6A (Non-Specified Stimulants) of the World Anti-Doping Code – International Standard – Prohibited List 2025 (2025 Prohibited List). Cocaine and its metabolite Benzoylecgonine are prohibited In-Competition only and are Non-Specified Stimulant Substances. Cocaine is also classified as a ‘Substance of Abuse’ under the 2025 Prohibited List.
Under Article 10.2.4.1 of the Australian Football Anti-Doping Code 2021 (AF Code), if the Athlete can establish that any ingestion or Use of the substance occurred Out-of-Competition and was unrelated to sport performance, then the period of Ineligibility shall be three (3) months.
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Additionally, the Athlete’s period of Ineligibility under Article 10.2.4.1 of the AF Code may be further reduced to one (1) month if the Athlete satisfactorily completes a Substance of Abuse treatment program approved by SIA and the AFL.
In Mr Guadagnin’s case, all requirements for a reduction in the period of Ineligibility under Article 10.2.4.1 of the ANADP were satisfied.
In accordance with Article 8.3.3 of the AF Code and Article 9.0 of the World Anti-Doping Code – International Standard – Results Management 2023 (ISRM) the AFL have imposed a one-month period of Ineligibility on Mr Guadagnin commencing on 25 July 2025.
Mr Guadagnin was ineligible to participate in any sports that have adopted a World Anti-Doping Code compliant anti-doping policy between 25 July 2025 and 11:59 pm on 24 August 2025. He was also not permitted to compete in a non-signatory professional league, or event organised by a non-signatory International or National level event organisation.
Additional information on the Prohibited Substance
Stimulants are a class of drug that accelerate the function of the central nervous system. They stimulate the sympathetic nervous system which causes an increase in body temperature, heart rate, blood pressure and affects respiratory rate. They also suppress sensations of hunger, thirst and fatigue which when combined with sharp rises in body temperature result in an increased risk of dehydration, complete exhaustion and death.
- Further information on Cocaine and Sport can be located here: Cocaine use in sport.