The case involves an arbitration decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) concerning an anti-doping rule violation by Italian softball player Laura Vigna. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) appealed an earlier agreement between Vigna and the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC), which had imposed an eight-month ineligibility period for evading sample collection on November 19, 2020. WADA sought a longer suspension of 12 to 24 months, arguing the initial penalty was insufficient. The proceedings began when WADA filed a Statement of Appeal on August 30, 2021, requesting the case be heard by a sole arbitrator. The respondents, WBSC and Vigna, initially opposed this, preferring a three-arbitrator panel and requesting proceedings in Italian. However, CAS ruled that English would be the procedural language, and the matter was assigned to sole arbitrator Jordi López Batet. Before arbitration could proceed, the parties entered settlement discussions, leading to a suspension of the case in October 2021.
By December 2021, the parties reached a settlement, requesting it be formalized as a consent award under Article R56(2) of the CAS Code. The settlement replaced the original agreement and imposed a one-year ineligibility period on Vigna, backdated to November 19, 2020. Additionally, WBSC agreed to pay WADA CHF 4,000 as a contribution to legal costs, with all other claims waived. The sole arbitrator reviewed the settlement to ensure it was bona fide and compliant with public policy, confirming CAS's jurisdiction under the WBSC Anti-Doping Rules and the CAS Code. The consent award was issued on April 19, 2022, formalizing the settlement terms and concluding the dispute.
The document outlines the settlement agreement and consent award, which stemmed from Vigna's violation under Article 2.3 of the 2015 WBSC Anti-Doping Rules. The CAS had jurisdiction under Article 13.2 of the WBSC Anti-Doping Rules and Article R47 of the CAS Code. The settlement was ratified and incorporated into a consent award under Article R56(2) of the CAS Code, allowing settlements to be formalized in arbitral awards with the parties' consent. The Sole Arbitrator reviewed the agreement to ensure it was made in good faith, complied with public policy, and was not fraudulent. Finding no objections, the arbitrator approved the settlement, terminating the proceedings. The final ruling ratified the settlement terms, ended the arbitration process, and dismissed all other claims, ensuring enforceability and resolving the dispute between WADA, WBSC, and Laura Vigna.