As a result, the visually impaired athlete will no longer be able to compete at next month's Rio 2016 Paralympic Games in his home country.

Dos Santos Pereira returned an adverse analytical finding for two substances - stanozolol and oxandrolone - in a urine sample provided on May 18.

This was after he had competed in the men’s discus F11 at the IPC Athletics Grand Prix in Rio de Janeiro, an event that doubled up as the 2016 Caixa Loterias Athletics Open Championships. 

Both substances are included on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) 2016 Prohibited List under the category S1.1a Exogenous Anabolic Androgenic Steroids (AAS), and are prohibited at all times, both in and out of competition.

As a result of his violation, Dos Santos Pereira will be ineligible from competition for four years from June 3, the date the athlete was notified, until June 2, 2020.

All of Dos Santos Pereira’s results obtained from the date of the test and onwards will be disqualified, including the forfeiture of any medals, points, records and prizes.

"The principle of strict liability applies to anti-doping matters," an IPC statement said.

"Therefore, each athlete is strictly liable for the substances found in his or her sample, and that an anti-doping rule violation occurs whenever a prohibited substance (or its metabolites or markers) is found in his or her bodily specimen, whether or not the athlete intentionally or unintentionally used a prohibited substance or was negligent or otherwise at fault.

"As a signatory of the World Anti-Doping Code (WADC), the IPC remains committed to a doping free sporting environment at all levels.

"The IPC, together with the International Federations and the National Paralympic Committees, established the IPC Anti-Doping Code to prevent doping in sport for Paralympic athletes, in the spirit of fair play. The IPC Anti-Doping Code is in conformity with the general principles of the WADC."