After a lengthy wait, Springbok prop Asenathi Ntlabakanye is said to have learned his fate after testing positive for prohibited substances.
Last year, it came to light that Ntlabakanye had tested positive for the non-performance-enhancing banned substance Anastrozole, and which was apparently prescribed by “a specialist physician early in 2025 for medical reasons”.
Yet, athletes are generally given very little leeway under the principle of strict liability as the responsibility ultimately rests with them to double check everything they take.
Complicating matters further is that Ntlabakanye actually volunteered the information in good faith that he had also taken dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), a ‘non-specified’ and ‘performance-enhancing’ substance.
Springbok learns his fate
According to respected rugby write Hendrik Cronje, the Independent Doping Tribunal Panel (IDHP) has now handed down its verdict, and the 27-year-old has been suspended for 18 months.
The ban will be effective from 13 May 2026, and it will rule him out of the World Cup next year.
“Lions Rugby Company confirms that it has received communication from the South African Institute for Drug-Free Sport (SAIDS) regarding the decision to sanction Lions prop Asenathi Ntlabakanye for a period of 18 months following an anti-doping rule violation,” Cronje shared on social media.
He added: “The Player, SAIDS, World Rugby and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) have 21 days within which to file an appeal against the sanction to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). The ban will expire on the 13th November 2027.”
It’s a huge blow for the Springboks and the powerful prop, who earned four Test caps last season and had clearly been earmarked as a genuine World Cup contender.
Ntlabakanye, who has also been a mainstay at the Lions since 2020, went through a rigorous fitness and conditioning programme last year and had just got himself into some of the best shape of his life when the news of his positive tests became public.
Although there is some level of leniency on his ban, as it could have been as long as four years, it is still a potentially career-defining decision.
Lions were already preparing for the worst
Recently, the Lions opted to bolster their front row stocks with the recruitment of former Junior Springbok prop Corne Weilbach.
“We believe and hope for the best for Asenathi. If it doesn’t turn out that way, though, that is one of the reasons why (Weilbach) joined us recently,” coach Ivan van Rooyen admitted at the time.
