Former light-welterweight world champion boxer Amir Khan has been handed a two-year ban from all sport after testing positive for a prohibited substance.
UK Anti-Doping said the 36-year-old returned a positive result for the anabolic agent ostarine following his sixth-round technical knock-out loss to Kell Brook in Manchester in February 2022.
Khan, who announced his retirement in May last year, accepted a violation of anti-doping rules but said he had not intentionally ingested the substance, an argument accepted by an independent panel following a hearing in January this year.
Reacting to the verdict, Khan said on Sky News that he would “never cheat” and reiterated that he did not know how the substance, which is designed to promote muscle building, had entered his system.
“I’ve never cheated,” Khan said. “I’m a retired fighter. At the same time you can see by my performance against Kell Brook wasn’t the best, I lost the fight. If I went in there and knocked Kell Brook out it’s different.
“I’ve never cheated in my life. I’m the one that wanted testing on that fight. Also, the amount that was in my system could have been by shaking people’s hands. I don’t know the drug that was in my system. Ostarine?
“I would never cheat. I’m a retired fighter. I’ve got a two-year ban now which is quite strange and funny that they banned me. I’ve already retired. I’ve no comeback plans at all.”
"I've never cheated" said Professional boxer and Olympic medalist Amir Khan.It comes after the boxer's urine sample following his fight against Kell Brook in February 2022 tested positive for ostarinehttps://t.co/M756oXWVc8
Boxing
Amir Khan
Sky News