Russian sprinter Mamyr Stash has been sanctioned by the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) after testing positive for cocaine and its metabolite, a Class S6a stimulant under the 2025 WADA Prohibited List.
The Disciplinary Anti-Doping Committee of RUSADA rendered its decision, declaring Stash ineligible for three months for a violation under clause 4.1 of the All-Russian Anti-Doping Rules. The sanction began on Wednesday, 12 February 2026, with credit given for a provisional suspension that started on Thursday, 14 November 2025. The sanction was published on Tuesday, 27 May 2026. With the provisional suspension counted, Stash effectively served his ban already and resumed racing in April.
The 33-year-old came through the Russian development system before entering the professional ranks with Itera-Katusha in 2014. He later rode for RusVelo (2015-2016), Lokosphinx (2017-2018), Gazprom-RusVelo (2019), Turkish squad Spor Toto Cycling Team (2020-2021), and Vozrozhdenie (2022). Since 2023, he has competed for the amateur Minsk Cycling Club, winning the Tour of Russia in 2024.
At his peak, Stash was regarded as one of Russia’s more promising sprinters. In 2015, riding for RusVelo and the Russian national team at the Under-23 European Championships in Estonia, he finished second in the road race, narrowly beaten by Slovakia’s Erik Baška in the sprint. He also won the 2014 Central European Tour Szerencs-Ibrány, claimed Stage 4 of the 2017 Flèche du Sud, and took overall victory at the 2020 Grand Prix Gazipaşa.
Cocaine is classified under the S6 stimulants category and is prohibited in-competition under the WADA Code. Unlike substances such as EPO or testosterone, cocaine is not generally associated with endurance enhancement in road cycling, though its prohibition reflects broader anti-doping and integrity standards within sport.
The reduced three-month sanction — rather than the standard two-year ban — suggests RUSADA determined the substance was used outside a performance-enhancing context, consistent with WADA guidelines in cases where no significant sporting advantage is established.
Russia’s anti-doping record remains under intense scrutiny. Gran Fondo Daily News previously reported the four-year ban handed to cyclist Eugenia Tretiakova, 39, after she tested positive for the black market substance GW1516, as well as the five-year sanction imposed on Grigory Frantsev, 42, after he tested positive for testosterone, clostebol and androsterone. Stash’s case adds to a growing list of Russian cycling sanctions, even if the substance involved differs significantly in nature.
Photo Credit: Minsk Cycling Club
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