A Norwegian trail runner who has won several world championship medals in recent years has said he's "utterly bewildered" after testing positive for a banned substance following last year's UTMB.
Stian Angermund is currently the World Champion in Short Trail Running having won the 55 km OCC event in the 2023 UTMB for the second time. However, in a social media post on February 10, Angermund reveals that he received a "life changing" email in October from the French anti-doping agency informing him he had tested positive for chlorthalidone.
"These past months have been the most difficult and challenging of my sporting career," says Angermund.
"I haven’t used any medications or supplements, nor have I ever taken or misused drugs. Where could this possibly have come from?"
Chlortalidone is a diuretic that can be used to mask the traces of performance enhancing drugs in the bloodstream and is banned by the World Anti Doping Agency. Angermund is now suspended from competition pending an investigation and says he won't be racing this summer.
"The profound sadness and sorrow I feel in losing my career, reputation, and passion for sport cannot be overstated. This ordeal has already brought countless tears, sleepless nights, and is testing my self-esteem," continues Angermund, who claims he is a "clean athlete" and says he is currently in the process of vigorously defending his innocence.
The 37-year-old has racked up an impressive scoreboard in the last eight years on the trails. He won the 40 km distances at the 2021 Amazing Thailand World Mountain and Trail Running Championships and holds two gold medals from the 2016 Skyrunning Championships.
