Beach Volleyball Star Kristen Kruse Handed Two-Month Doping Suspension
American beach volleyball player Kristen Kruse has reached a resolution agreement with FIVB and WADA over a banned substance found in a 2023 sample, resulting in a two-month suspension. The penalty only takes effect now, more than three and a half years after the positive test.
The International Volleyball Federation (FIVB), the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and American beach volleyball player Kristen Kruse have signed a resolution agreement in her doping case. Kruse admitted that a sample collected during the Beach Pro elite tour stop in Doha on January 27, 2023, tested positive for the banned substance canrenone. The substance entered her system because she was taking medication to treat a health condition, but she had failed to submit a therapeutic use exemption application in time.
Kruse acknowledged violating anti-doping rules under Articles 2.1 and/or 2.2 of FIVB's 2022 Medical and Anti-Doping Regulations. As a result, she received a two-month suspension, which takes effect on September 8, 2026. FIVB reiterated its commitment to protecting fair play and maintaining a zero-tolerance policy toward doping.
A short and delayed ban
Kristen Kruse (formerly Nuss) is regarded as one of the strongest defenders on the world tour despite her relatively modest height of 168 centimeters, known for powerful defense and attacks aimed at open court. At the 2025 world championship final, Latvia's leading pair Tīna Graudiņa and Anastasija Samoilova defeated Kruse and her partner Taryn Brasher 21:15, 15:21, 15:11, despite having lost all ten of their previous sets against the Americans.
Notably, the suspension for a violation dating back to January 2023 is relatively brief and only took effect more than three and a half years after the positive test - timed for a period without major competitions. News of the ban was reportedly published on September 18, but the corresponding article on fivb.com briefly became inaccessible. The case adds to a recent string of short suspensions across sports, following similar cases involving tennis players Iga Swiatek, Jannik Sinner and Nick Kyrgios.
