Maria Sharapova fails drugs test

[3pm]

Just been on SSN.

[Scouse Hibee]

Waiting for Sergey to respond........................................... .................................................. ...................

[Just Jimmy]

Usual nonsense excuses. The house of cards will start to come down now hopefully. Too many too long.

[BroxburnHibee]

Not really worked have they

[Sir David Gray]

Just watching this now.

I knew she had a "major announcement" to make and actually thought she would be announcing her retirement.

I really didn't expect this.

[Pretty Boy]

Tip of the iceberg.

Elite level sport is absolutely rotten to the core in so many ways.

[Sergey]

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Waiting for Sergey to respond........................................... .................................................. ...................

She's failed for Mildronate which wasn't detectable until quite recently.

This isn't the sort of chemical that you would accidentally consume and it's been on the ban list for some time.

It surprises me not one jot that i) another Russian athlete has failed a dope test and ii) she's another from the Nike camp.

[Scouse Hibee]

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She's failed for Mildronate which wasn't detectable until quite recently.

This isn't the sort of chemical that you would accidentally consume and it's been on the ban list for some time.

It surprises me not one jot that i) another Russian athlete has failed a dope test and ii) she's another from the Nike camp.

[3pm]

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She's failed for Mildronate which wasn't detectable until quite recently.

This isn't the sort of chemical that you would accidentally consume and it's been on the ban list for some time.

It surprises me not one jot that i) another Russian athlete has failed a dope test and ii) she's another from the Nike camp.

I thought said drug was banned from 1 Jan?

[Sergey]

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Tip of the iceberg.

Elite level sport is absolutely rotten to the core in so many ways.

This quote is hidden because you are ignoring this member. Show Quote

Rather annoyingly, I'm over in France tomorrow and will miss the immediate fall-out to the story, but as PB says, this is just the tip of the iceberg as WADA have recently introduced a number of new doping procedures and are now testing for different substances. As an aside, a Russian Ice Dancer also failed today for the very same substance.

Tennis has a similar problem to where cycling was at several years ago. There was a huge drug bust involving a certain Dr Fuentes in Spain several years ago when several dozen high profile cyclists were caught blood doping. At the subsequent trial, a number of other Spanish athletes were implicated, but the Spanish authorities and judicial system only released the names of the cyclists for fear of bringing the whole country into disrepute. It was rumoured that Spain could have been stripped of their Euro victory if the names of Fuentes clients were in the public domain.

Not surprisingly, two Spanish tennis players were secretly filmed as using his medical practice - one being Nadal, the other was Jaun Martin del Potro. Since the bust, both of their careers have simply fallen off the proverbial cliff.

I'm glad that Sharapova has finally been snared. She won't be the last.

[Sir David Gray]

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Rather annoyingly, I'm over in France tomorrow and will miss the immediate fall-out to the story, but as PB says, this is just the tip of the iceberg as WADA have recently introduced a number of new doping procedures and are now testing for different substances. As an aside, a Russian Ice Dancer also failed today for the very same substance.

Tennis has a similar problem to where cycling was at several years ago. There was a huge drug bust involving a certain Dr Fuentes in Spain several years ago when several dozen high profile cyclists were caught blood doping. At the subsequent trial, a number of other Spanish athletes were implicated, but the Spanish authorities and judicial system only released the names of the cyclists for fear of bringing the whole country into disrepute. It was rumoured that Spain could have been stripped of their Euro victory if the names of Fuentes clients were in the public domain.

Not surprisingly, two Spanish tennis players were secretly filmed as using his medical practice - one being Nadal, the other was Jaun Martin del Potro. Since the bust, both of their careers have simply fallen off the proverbial cliff.

I'm glad that Sharapova has finally been snared. She won't be the last.

Juan Martin Del Potro's Argentinian and his career's stalled due to a chronic wrist injury.

[Sergey]

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I thought said drug was banned from 1 Jan?

WADA only had a reliable testing procedure that would stand-up to scrutiny on 1st January. They can only test for substances that that in the public domain. Athletes for years have been in cahoots with pharmaceutical companies and have been taking drugs that were still at the clinical trial stage. You can't test for them.

The precursor of this drug was on the banned list, it was simply that this derivative was yet to be introduced. Akin to the 'legal highs' that skip around the drug laws in this country.

[heretoday]

Her statement to camera seemed pretty honest and contrite for the most part. Then she rather ruined it with a fatuous attempt at levity near the end. Some remark about the hotel carpet.

She needs PR advice. Also a more wide awake medical team behind her.

[GreenLake]

It means I won't see her at the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells next weekend. I will see Andy Murray and might toss him a Hibs scarf if he plays after we win the cup on Sunday. I would love to see him hoist it at a pre-match interview.

[heretoday]

Andy spoke sense yesterday about the business. Seems there are a lot of fit tennis players with heart conditions!

[Pretty Boy]

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Andy spoke sense yesterday about the business. Seems there are a lot of fit tennis players with heart conditions!

Murray absolutely nailed it. There were a few thinly veiled accusations in there imo.

[Geo_1875]

Sports authorities should stop wasting time and money trying to catch drug abusers. Let them all take what they want and then it's a level playing field.

[CropleyWasGod]

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Sports authorities should stop wasting time and money trying to catch drug abusers. Let them all take what they want and then it's a level playing field.

It's not, though.

That's explained in one of the chapters in Tyler Hamilton's book about his years as one of Lance's boys. Without getting too technical about it, a small amount of performance-enhancing agents can affect different people in different ways. As a result, there will never be a "level playing-field".

Apart from that, there's the moral issue. If it's accepted that one can only be a top sportsperson by using drugs, what kind of message does that give our kids?

[Geo_1875]

[QUOTE=CropleyWasGod;4614384]It's not, though.

That's explained in one of the chapters in Tyler Hamilton's book about his years as one of Lance's boys. Without getting too technical about it, a small amount of performance-enhancing agents can affect different people in different ways. As a result, there will never be a "level playing-field".

Apart from that, there's the moral issue. If it's accepted that one can only be a top sportsperson by using drugs, what kind of message does that give our kids?[/QUOTE]

As it stands, we're telling them you can get paid £21m a year for hitting a ball over a net while wearing very short skirts and tight tops.

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

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As it stands, we're telling them you can get paid £21m a year for hitting a ball over a net while wearing very short skirts and tight tops.

Is that really all there is too it?

[JimBHibees]

Interesting disagreement between Murray and Becker.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/articl...ing-suspicions