HONG KONG — Former world No. 1 female player Zhou Mi has been banned for two years by the Badminton World Federation after testing positive for clenbuterol.
A urine sample taken from the Hong Kong player in late June tested positive for the drug, the governing body said in a statement on Saturday.
Zhou said she took the drug — used by asthma sufferers or as a weight-loss aid — unknowingly, as it was contained in a Chinese medicine to treat a fever.
Zhou's ban rules her out qualifying for the 2012 London Olympics, but was expected to appeal.
Badminton World Federation chief operating officer Thomas Lund said in a statement it was the body's first drug ban in recent years.
"The case sends a strong message to elite athletes in the sport, who need to be aware of prohibited substances and the consequences of taking these — either deliberately or inadvertently," Lund said.
The Hong Kong Badminton Association said Zhou took the Chinese medication for a fever while training in Singapore in June.
"She was not aware of the prohibited substance possibly in the medication," the statement said.
Zhou, currently ranked world No. 13, plans to appeal, Hong Kong's Ming Pao Daily News reported Sunday.
"I passed all my drug tests in past 20-plus years. I have never thought about using improper methods to improve my results," the newspaper quoted Zhou as saying at a news conference on Saturday.
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