Maria Sharapova held a press conference yesterday to say she has been
busted for using a banned substance at the Australian Open.
Quote:The five-time Grand Slam champion said Monday she failed a doping test at the Australian Open in January for meldonium, which became a banned substance under the World Anti-Doping Agency code this year.
The former No. 1 said she had taken meldonium, a heart medicine which improves blood flow and is little-known in the U.S., for a decade following various health problems including regular sicknesses, early signs of diabetes and ''irregular'' results from echocardiography exams.
''I was first given the substance back in 2006. I had several health issues going on at the time,'' she said. Sharapova didn't specify whether she had used it constantly since then.
Meldonium was banned because it aids oxygen uptake and endurance, and several athletes in various international sports have already been caught using it since it was banned on Jan. 1.
Latvian company Grindeks, which manufactures meldonium, told The Associated Press that four to six weeks was a common course.
''Depending on the patient's health condition, treatment course of meldonium preparations may vary from four to six weeks. Treatment course can be repeated twice or thrice a year,'' the company said in an emailed statement. ''Only physicians can follow and evaluate patient's health condition and state whether the patient should use meldonium for a longer period of time.''
Several thoughts go through my head:
- Doesn't she have people to keep track of this stuff; doctors, trainers, coaches, etc?
- Why has she been using this for ten years?
- Nice job holding a press conference and owning up to it.
- Not that she needs it but she just lost eight figures in endorsements.
- Despite being Russian, Sharapova has lived in the US since age seven where this stuff is not approved. Wouldn't she have seen a US sports expert? At the high end, I doubt you could beat US doctors specializing in sports medicine.
Quote:While meldonium was banned as of Jan. 1, the decision to ban it had been announced by WADA and sports organizations as early as September 2015. Sharapova said she received an email with information on the changes in December, but did not read the information at the time.
- And you probably should not put the World Anti Doping Agency on your spam list if you are an athlete.
