Marian Rizan was unknowingly taking banned substances

The closed Romanian gymnastics system from the communist regime was known for its strict rules. Everything was solved inside the RGF and all major problems were kept under wraps. Same thing happened in 1987. At the European Championships in Moscow, one of the members of the men’s national team, Marian Rizan –who won two bronze medals- came very close to being implicated in a major international scandal. Rizan tested positive for a derivative of amphetamine, making him the first gymnast from Romania to be accused of doping. Cristian Stoiciu, the men’s team doctor at the time, took the brunt of the scandal. “Everything stared in Bucharest. We received some energy-boosting pills from the Sports Medicine Institute, and we administered them to the entire team on a daily basis. Nobody knew what the pill called Glycoramine really contained,” recalls Dr. Cristian Stoiciu.

The FIG forgave him

Marian Rizan was the gymnast chosen for the random drug test performed by FIG representatives at the end of the competition. “I remember he drank a few beers, gave his urine test, and we all headed back to out hotel. Nobody could even begin to imagine what happened next. We returned home and, one week later, the bomb was dropped on us! The International Federation sent a fax to Bucharest, informing us Marian Rizan tested positive for a derivative of amphetamine!” Despite that finding, the FIG decided to let Marian off with just a warning, allowing him to keep the medals he won. They decided the derivative of amphetamine was found in very small quantities, and it couldn’t have been used to hide the presence of other banned substances. Dr. Stoiciu who was in Resita with the men’s team was immediately asked to come to Bucharest. He was asked to provide a list of all the medicine and vitamins administered to the gymnasts before they left for Europeans. "We went through a process of elimination. That’s how we found Glycoramine. An energy booster provided by -isn’t it ironic- the same Sports Medicine Institute from Bucharest.

Scapegoat

Since all these situations call for a scapegoat to be found, Dr. Stoiciu was declared the guilty party in this instance He was transferred from the gymnastics team to the junior boxing team. “Only one person from the Sports medicine Institute tried to help me, namely Zoica Cioarã, who was actually a [Communist] Party secretary at the time,” explained Stoiciu. The other SMI employees turned their back on this. Nadia Comaneci and Dan Grecu also tried to intervene in Dr. Stoiciu’s favor, understanding all too well real guilt lay elsewhere.

”Some orange pills”

Marian Rizan lives in Copenhagen now, where he coaches the Danish men’s team. He agreed to talk to Gazeta Sporturilor about what happened.
GS: How did you react when you heard the FIG’s decision?
MR: They tried to protect me. Mr. Dan Grecu asked to see me and he explained what happened in a roundabout way. To this day I remember exactly what those damned pills looked like! They were orange-colored and tasted pretty good.
GS: Were you afraid you could lose your medals?
MR: There was a certain sense of fear. Especially since I didn’t feel guilty at all. But, it’s a good thing everything stopped there [with a warning].

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