The United States Anti-Doping Agency announced today that elite triathlete Mark Fretta of Colorado Springs, Colorado has committed an anti-doping violation and has been given a 4-year sanction.
Fretta, 35, was given a 4-year-period of ineligibility because, according to a USADA release, “variations in his individual longitudinal blood profile as well as other documentary evidence indicated the use of Erythropoiesis-Stimulating Agents such as Erythropoietin (EPO).”
Erythropoiesis-Stimulating Agents are listed in the category of Peptide Hormones which are on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s prohibited list and are forbidden under the International Triathlon Union Anti-Doping Rules.
Fretta’s 4-year period of ineligibility began June 11 of this year, the date he accepted a provisional suspension. Fretta has this been disqualified from “all competitive results achieved on and subsequent to August 18, 2010, the date USADA collected the first blood sample that was included in Fretta’s individual longitudinal blood profile (aka biological blood passport).”
This decision wipes out one of Fretta's most impressive results, a win at the 2010 Chicago Triathlon.
USADA states that they have instituted longitudinal (over time) blood data collection and comprehensive scientific review “to identify changes in biological parameters that may be indicative of doping.” In this program, USADA collects athlete samples to measure unique biological parameters including hemoglobin concentration, hematocrit, and percentage reticulocytes over time to establish an individual’s longitudinal blood profile. Variations in these measurements can be indicative of performance-enhancing drug use and can result in an anti-doping rule violation under the World Anti-Doping Agency code.
Fretta was a high school All-American in swimming and qualified for the NCAA Division 1 Track and Field Championships in the 1500 and the mile. He started triathlon after college and won his age group in the 2000 National sprint championships. In his first season as an elite, he was top American in four ITU points races in 2001. He qualified for the 2003 ITU World Championships after Hunter Kemper could not compete due to illness. That same year, he finished 3rd at the ITU World Cup in Tongyeong, South Korea – the first podium finish for a U.S. man at a World Cup since 2011. He also placed 4th at the 2004 ITU World Cup in Cancun.
Since then, Fretta’s results have been mixed and include 5th at the 2005 ITU World Cup in Corner Brook, 2nd at the 2005 ITU World Cup in Doha, Qatar, 3rd at the 2007 ITU Triathlon Pan American Cup in Honolulu, 4th at the 2009 ITU Triathlon Pan American Cup in Tuscaloosa, and 4th at the ITU Triathlon Pan American Cup in Lima. In his last race he placed 53rd at the ITU World Triathlon Series in San Diego last May.
