The testers, from the Estonian Anti-Doping and Sports Ethics Foundation (EADSE), had on Saturday attended the opening game of the Estonian ice hockey championship finals, featuring Narva PSK and Tartu Välk 494 at the Astri Arena in Tartu.

Delfi reported the two testers were met with harsh abuse, in the Russian language, and were strongly urged to leave the way they had come, after entering the Narva locker room post-match.

The two testers approached two players from each team.

EADSE lead investigator Remo Perli said: "I would describe it as very unsportsmanlike and brutal behavior toward our doping testers. Accompanied by loud Russian-language obscenities, they refused to give doping samples and forced the testers to leave. All of this was rather initiated by the club's support staff, and the players followed suit," he commented.

The level of resistance was unprecedented in the experience of Estonian testers, Perli added, saying: "There have been some insults before, but this was at a completely new level."

The two Narva players approached – Kirill Iljin and Maksim Berezhonov – did eventually comply with the procedures once the situation had calmed, Delfi reported.

Estonian Ice Hockey Association (Eesti hokiliit) chair Rauno Parras said that the two players' licenses have been suspended while the case is being further handled by the federation's disciplinary committee.

On the ice, Tartu won the first game 4:2 on Saturday, while Narva, defending champions, returned the favor to win 5:2, to tie the series at 1:1.

The deciding games are to take place in Narva next Saturday and Sunday.

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!