A decision by UK Anti-Doping to reduce Mark Dry's four-year ban for subverting the anti-doping rules to 28 months has been endorsed by an appeal tribunal ©Getty Images

UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) claimed it is "pleased" Mark Dry's ban for tampering violations has been reduced from four years to 28 months after an independent appeal tribunal unanimously endorsed its issued decision earlier this year.

British hammer thrower Dry, a double Commonwealth Games bronze medallist, was charged in May 2019 for lying about his whereabouts after he missed a drugs test on October 15 the previous year.

Athletes must let the anti-doping authorities know exactly where they will be at one time every day so they can be randomly tested.

They can miss three drugs tests in a 12-month period.  

Dry and his then partner Leah Govier wrote to UKAD falsely claiming he missed the drugs test because he had been fishing.

In February 2020, an appeal tribunal said the 33-year-old "lied" to "subvert the anti-doping process".

Dry, who, representing Scotland, finished third in the Commonwealth Games at both Glasgow 2014 and Gold Coast 2018, was banned not for missing the drugs test. but his subsequent misleading of the doping authorities.

In May 2021, UKAD issued a decision to reduce Dry's initial four-year ban to 28 months. 

An appeal tribunal has now unanimously endorsed this decision, which UKAD is "pleased" with.

UK Anti-Doping claimed it is
UK Anti-Doping claimed it is "pleased" the decision to reduce Mark Dry's ban from four years to 28 months has now been endorsed by an appeals tribunal ©Getty Images

A UKAD spokesperson said: "We note the decision following Mark Dry’s appeal. 

"We are pleased that the independent appeal tribunal unanimously endorsed UKAD’s Issued Decision dated 7 May 2021, which reduces Mr Dry’s ban from four years to 28 months.

"UKAD was able to reduce Mr Dry’s ban in light of the 2021 World Anti-Doping Code, introduced on 1 January, which now provides flexibility when sanctioning athletes for tampering violations. 

"Mr Dry continues to be banned from sport until 24 January 2022. 

"Thereafter, he is free to return to competition.

"The anti-doping programme requires athletes to be at the location logged in their whereabouts so out-of-competition testing can be conducted, without prior notice.

"Any effort to undermine this process, including providing fraudulent information, is clearly unacceptable and is a violation of the anti-doping rules. 

"Athletes should be under no illusion that such behaviour will lead to a lengthy ban from sport."

On Twitter, Dry responded to the reduction: "Struggling to bite my tongue but through fear of being sued I'm trying to exercise restraint, but just wanted to say thank you for your support and love. 

"It's been rough, I'm a bit of a fat shipwreck but I'll be back, for better or for worse. 

"We don't quit."