Iuniarra Sipaia won a bronze medal in the women's over 90kg category at the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Turkmenistan in September but was subsequently suspended for using triamcinolone acetonide.
The President of the Samoa Weightlifting Federation, Jerry Wallwork, said they've been using cortisone injections to treat knee or joint injuries for years and were not made aware the rules had changed.
"I didn't know - my doctor didn't know. He should have done his research that it's now on the banned list starting from 2016," he said.
