Paul Bird, the rally driver, has been handed an eight-year ban after he refused to provide a sample to UK Anti Doping (Ukad).
That offence in 2018 was Bird’s second violation and the reason he has been handed such a hefty ban. He had only returned to racing in 2017 after serving a two-year ban for testing positive for cocaine.
At the Rallynuts Stages Rally in Brecknockshire, mid-Wales, last April, Bird was one of six competitors chosen at random to be tested, but he refused to give a sample.
The 51-year-old, who has also run a MotoGP team and enjoyed success in the British Superbike championship as a boss, was charged in July and his ban will start from that date, meaning he will be