In 2013, both athletes accumulated three whereabouts failures and they appeared before a three-member BWF Doping Hearing Panel earlier this month to answer the charges.

Although the panel decided against the maximum two-year ban, the one year suspension offically began on January 23 and will rule the pair out of future tournaments, including the Asian Games on home courts in Incheon in September.

Kim Ki Jung won a bronze medal at the 2013 World Championships ©AFP/Getty Images


Both players have the right to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) so long as they do so by February 17, while additional financial sanctions being awarded to the Badminton Korea Association are also being considered.

The result is the latest in a series of unusual bans handed out to badminton players in recent months - following Thailand's Bodin Issara being banned for brawling with an opponent, also a former doubles partner, last year. 

British athlete Christine Ohuruogu received a similar ban in 2006 for missing a series out-of-competition drugs tests before bouncing back to win the 400 metres at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. 

If upheld the latest ban is a particular blow for South Korea ahead of the Asian Games because Lee Yong Dae - a mixed doubles champion at Beijing 2008, who also won men's doubles bronze at London 2012, as well as four previous Asian Games medals - was one of their biggest medal hopes. 

Although less experienced, Kim Ki-jung won a World Championship bronze medal in 2013 along with men's doubles partner Kim Sa-rang, and would also have been an Incheon medal contender..

After winning medals at the 2006 and 2010 editions Lee Yong Dae is set to be unable to add to his Asian Games medal collection at Incheon 2014 ©AFP/Getty Images


Kim Jung-soo, executive director of Badminton Korea Association (BKA), claimed the two players would never intentionally miss doping tests.

"When the WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) inspectors visited the Taeneung National Training Centre in March and November last year, Lee and Kim were not there as they were participating in local and international competitions," he said.

"We failed to submit a whereabouts report online last September as well.

"Kim and Lee have never used banned substances and did not reject or intentionally avoid testing - they have participated in a number of international competitions and passed all the tests every time.

"It is hard to understand that they are punished just because they were not present when the inspectors came to check their whereabouts without prior notice."

Kim claimed the BKA would "aggressively" appeal the case to seek a reduction in the bans to three or six months instead of one year so that the players could compete in the Asian Games.

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