By James Sutherland on SwimSwam
Former NCAA champion and World Championship medalist Kensey McMahon has received a four-year suspension from the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) after testing positive for a banned substance in 2023.
McMahon, 24, tested positive for vadadustat during an in-competition test at the 2023 U.S. National Championships last July. She and USADA mutually agreed to delay the arbitration hearing while she remained provisionally suspended to give her an opportunity to investigate the source of the positive test.
The hearing was held on May 2, 2024, where an arbitrator determined that McMahon would receive the four-year sanction.
Vadadustat is described by USADA as a “non-specified substance in the category of Peptide Hormones, Growth Factors, Related Substances and Mimetics” and is prohibited under the USADA, U.S. Olympic Committee and World Aquatics doping control rules.
Vadadustat is sold under the brand name Vafseo and used as a medication used for the treatment of symptomatic anemia associated with chronic kidney disease.
Vadadustat wasn’t approved for medical use in the U.S. at the time of McMahon’s positive test. It was approved in the U.S. in March 2024 after first being granted approval by the European Union in April 2023.
The concentration of vadadustat found in McMahon’s sample was extremely low, which the USADA report says makes it “possible, if not likely, that her positive test occurred because of some form of environmental contamination.”
McMahon posted on Instagram acknowledging the suspension, but says that extensive testing revealed no obvious source of contamination.
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McMahon’s hearing was on May 2 and she says she received the result this week. While the arbitrator did not conclude that she intended to cheat, they did say that she could not meet her burden of proof under anti-doping rules to receive a reduced suspension.
McMahon was tested twice in April 2023, one out of competition and one competition, and both were negative. She also tested negative four days after the positive on July 5, 2023.
In September 2023, two months after the positive test, McMahon told SwimSwam she was putting swimming “on pause” but declined to elaborate on the reasoning.
“My post-grad plan was to continue in the sport but sometimes plans don’t work out as you envision,” she said at the time. “Swimming is on pause and I’m pursuing other opportunities.”
McMahon’s positive test came in the midst of the most successful run of her career.
At U.S. Nationals when she tested positive, she placed 3rd in the women’s 1500 free (16:07.78) and 6th in the 800 free (8:25.97), both personal best times, and was also 8th in the 400 free.
All of McMahon’s results on and after July 1, 2023, have been disqualified, including the 1500 free at Nationals, which was on that exact date. Her swims in the 400 and 800 free both came earlier in the meet (June 27-July 1).
Her time in the 1500 free would have made her the 3rd-ranked American swimmer in the Olympic Trials qualifying period behind Katie Ledecky (15:26.27) and Katie Grimes (15:56.27).
McMahon wrapped up her college eligibility at Alabama in March 2023 with the best year of her career, winning NCAA titles in the women’s 500 free (4:36.62) and 1650 free (15:43.84) while also claiming the SEC title in the mile for the second time.
Even if McMahon had tested positive prior to the end of the NCAA season, her college results wouldn’t have been disqualified as the NCAA isn’t a World Anti-Doping Agency signatory.
She also had a breakthrough in meters in the midst of her last NCAA season, winning bronze at the 2022 Short Course World Championships in the women’s 1500 freestyle while representing the United States.
The Jacksonville, Florida native was named to the National Team in open water in 2023, and has represented the U.S. internationally in open water events multiple times, including placing 10th at the 2022 World Championships in the women’s 25km.
Over the course of her collegiate career, McMahon was a nine-time All-American, including finishing inside the top eight of the 1650 free in all four of her NCAA appearances. At the conference level, she won the SEC title in the 1650 free in 2020 to go along with her 2023 title, and she never missed the podium over five championship appearances, also placing 3rd in 2019 and 2nd in both 2021 and 2022.
Read the full story on SwimSwam: 2023 NCAA Champion Kensey McMahon Suspended Four Years For Positive Doping Test