Mathias Flückiger's suspension has been lifted ©Getty Images

The Swiss Sport Disciplinary Chamber has lifted the suspension against Tokyo 2020 silver medallist Mathias Flückiger after deciding to no longer consider one of the anti-doping tests as positive.

On August 18, the 33-year-old was notified that one of his samples taken on June 5 for the Swiss Cross Country Championships had tested positive for zeranol.

Zeranol is an anabolic which promotes muscle growth and is approved for use in livestock in some countries.

There was a minute amount found in the sample and as a result the 2021 Mountain Bike World Cup winner submitted an explanation to the Disciplinary Chamber saying that it should be considered atypical and not positive.

The body subsequently decided to no longer consider the result as a positive sample so the suspension was lifted.

"I never doped," said Switzerland's Flückiger, as reported by Radio Lac.

"The decision of the Disciplinary Chamber is a great relief for me.

"Those were the worst five months of my life.

"After months of heavy waiting, I look to the future again with optimism.

"I am very motivated sportingly, and I work every day when I come back."

However, the case is not completely settled yet.

Mathias Flückiger won gold at Tokyo 2020 but was forced to miss this year's European Championships due to his suspension ©Getty Images
Mathias Flückiger won gold at Tokyo 2020 but was forced to miss this year's European Championships due to his suspension ©Getty Images

The Disciplinary Chamber's decision has not fully exonerated Flückiger yet, with Swiss Sport Integrity now having to take a final stance.

"Swiss Sport Integrity remains of the view that on the basis of the numerous surveys conducted an adverse analytical finding has been found, and that the temporary suspension was, therefore, necessary," read a statement from the body.

"Swiss Sport Integrity will review this decision and will take the necessary measures."

Flückiger, who has been unable to compete for five months and missed the European Championships as a result, hopes "that my case will be definitively decided as soon as possible."

"The permanent insecurity, the wait of several months, the unfounded accusations must stop," he added.

At the time, Flückiger claimed that the amount detected in his sample was 0.3 nanograms per millilitre, a figure that is below the 5ng/mL threshold the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) requires for it to be regarded as an adverse analytical finding.

WADA guidance is that a concentration of zeranol or its metabolites at less than 5ng/mL being found in a sample should be treated as an atypical finding, triggering a mandatory investigation.