Maria Sharapova banned for failed drug test...

[don_budge]

Strange…I was just wondering about Maria Sharapova the other day.

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/03/07/tennis/maria-sharapova-tennis-injuries/index.html

Nike has suspended her contract which has some rather serious implications. If Nike is on board with this…clearly it is very serious.

http://money.cnn.com/2016/03/08/news/nike-maria-sharapova-nike-suspension-doping/index.html

Nike may or may not be one of the biggest Rafael Nadal enablers. Through all of his checkered leaves from the tour he never has had an inkling of non support from his biggest sponsor. There were rumblings of…never mind. It is all speculation…but this sort of lifts the lid off the cauldron.

Question…if Maria has been busted…what about the top female tennis player that has the physique of a…oh never mind.

Maria failed this drug test after the Australian Open loss to Serena Williams. This was right in the middle of the betting scandal that has disappeared from the radar. Anybody out there think that this is a clean sport?

[klacr]

This does not bother me too much. She came clean and admitted it. She holds herself accountable. Knee Jerk reaction for Nike to suspend ties with her. She's been taking the drug for 10 years, then on Jan. 1st it was listed on the do not use list. Ignorance is never a defense, but Maria is a professional and she'll deal with the consequences. Say what you want about her shrieking on court and her playing style, she is a competitor and understands the big picture. Her career will not be defined by this.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[stotty]

It just looks like a huge cock up to me, but she should know the drill by now and there can be no excuses, no matter how innocent or plausible. Gosh, with the entourage around a player like that you'd think somebody would have picked up on it.

[lobndropshot]

I think the fair punishment would be to suspend her the same amount of time she was illegally taking the the drug. Also, it would be fair to remove her prize money won during this period. I would love to see Sharapova back on the tour this year.

[johnyandell]

One interesting question: supposedly other players used it for performance enhancement. Wonder if it actually does that.

[klacr]

I think the fair punishment would be to suspend her the same amount of time she was illegally taking the the drug. Also, it would be fair to remove her prize money won during this period. I would love to see Sharapova back on the tour this year.

Well considering it has only been on WADA's banned substance since Jan 1st of this year, and Sharapova only played 4 matches this season, all at the Aussie Open, that's not too harsh.

Meldonium is the new Sugarpova flavor

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

[don_budge]

Meldonium…by any other name

One interesting question: supposedly other players used it for performance enhancement. Wonder if it actually does that.

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/mar/08/meldonium-maria-sharapova-failed-drugs-test

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2016/mar/08/maria-sharapova-press-conference-failed-drugs-test-meldonium

This does not bother me too much. She came clean and admitted it. She holds herself accountable.
Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

I don't calling it coming clean…it's PR. She had to have known. She was taking it for years and when an email comes out banning it…you would think that would have set off all kinds of flags. These are modern days…you have to be a spin doctor to sort it out. This is some strange stuff. It's hard to believe that she could be so stupid.

"Sharapova’s front foot response was typical of the world’s richest female athlete and has largely had the desired effect but such slick media relations make her team’s negligence over the banned substance in question so difficult to accept..."

[stotty]

One interesting question: supposedly other players used it for performance enhancement. Wonder if it actually does that.

Exactly, that's the question. Do performance enhancing drugs enhance the tennis player in a game where technique is at the very core? The few drug cheats that were ever caught were a way down the food chain anyway.

I guess a player who was technically the real deal would be enhanced by PEDs, but they need to be the real deal or PED's won't get them anywhere. Many have pointed the finger at Nadal in the past. I guess if he were on drugs he would be a prime candidate to benefit. He's technically very good with a game style dependent on fitness and strength.

Then of course life isn't fair either. Giles Simon is built like a scrawny chicken while Tsonga is built like a barn door. Where' the fairness in that.

[curiosity]

As the Guardian posted today, Grindeks, the Latvian manufacturer of Meldonium, says that a therapeutic course of use is typically between four and six WEEKS. In other words, if the medication were prescribed for one of the defects which Grindeks thinks appropriate, Sharapova (and a boatload of other Russian/East European athletes) would have been off it years ago.

The drug is known to increase oxygen uptake and also endurance. The drug is not approved for sale in the US with or without a prescription. The drug has neurological performance benefits as well, according to the manufacturer.

Query: It is known that many Russian athletes were taking the drug long-term. Do you really think they all had defects shown in their EKG, and had diabetes? That's laughable.

The WADA put athletes on notice that the drug was been monitored for possible listing early in 2015. Those who got caught recently just couldn't see giving it up? Thought the testing would be hit or miss?

There are a number of tennis athletes who claim special genetics, both on the mens and women's tours. Men and women with very low body fat and exceptionally well-developed muscles. Oddly, though, these specimens do not turn up among the millions who show up for regular physicals at physicians' offices.

[curiosity]

..... Do performance enhancing drugs enhance the tennis player in a game where technique is at the very core? The few drug cheats that were ever caught were a way down the food chain anyway.

.............

1. Yes. 2. Not true. David Ferrer had great game but needed more power. He got caught, had to take time off, and came back. A number of players with great technique have been suspected of taking anabolic steroids...and have disappeared for a few months immediately, vacationing on remote islands or such. The key suspected violators need not be named.

HGH is a more subtle drug. Visuals don't easily tell the story, reveal use, but surprising endurance improvements provide a hint,

[hockeyscout]

One interesting question: supposedly other players used it for performance enhancement. Wonder if it actually does that.

Yes, it's HUGE.

[hockeyscout]

This does not bother me too much. She came clean and admitted it. She holds herself accountable. Knee Jerk reaction for Nike to suspend ties with her. She's been taking the drug for 10 years, then on Jan. 1st it was listed on the do not use list. Ignorance is never a defense, but Maria is a professional and she'll deal with the consequences. Say what you want about her shrieking on court and her playing style, she is a competitor and understands the big picture. Her career will not be defined by this.

Kyle LaCroix USPTA
Boca Raton

Her comments to me at the press conference tell me all I need to know:

“If I was going to announce my retirement, it wouldn’t be in a downtown Los Angeles hotel with a fairly ugly carpet."

Gambling, drugs, extorsion, academies, match fixing - these people in the game are not nice people. My daughters mama asked me the other night - "Are these the type of shitheads our girls are going to be competing against in ten years?" My answer was, yes. Sad.

The WTA allowed Sharapova to announce her own failed drug test, and put spin on it. I trust none of these people now. Who would? There credibility is shot.

Basically what is happening is this in a nutshell - the world bodies see a weird substance in athletes (they started detecting this drug in a wide percentage of athletes), they send a memo to the federations saying they are testing and then everyone changes their path to "stay clean." In other words, you'd have to be an idiot to get caught, and they give you a roadmap to cheat.

In the harsh world of business - sport greedy pigs always get slaughtered. And, thats what happened here. Nike did the right thing here - and suspended her. Now, if someone did this to one of my brands in business I would sue them to hell and get my lawyers to untrack every other mis-deed, and get my money back. Ever cent. And, they would pay for my lawyers to. Lance Armstrong II. If I was Nike or Porsche I'd sue her for every penny, and stick her with my attourney fees as well. I wonder if Sharapova has good money people in place because now is the time to get rid of assets, and think about preservation.

My daughters are disapointed by this, as that was their idol.

Just because the drug is not on the "banned list" does not give you the descretion ingest it.

The Sharapova's of the world are ten years ahead of the field testers, who lets face it, they really cannot be this stupid can they?

Lets test this whole field in ten years, and see what is in their systems. I think it will be VERY interesting. It will be, an epidemic.

All is well here boys - later.

[hockeyscout]

Budge was right. And BTW, this drug was used by Russian soldiers in Afganistan in the 1980's (tough terrain), so, its not kids stuff and how it was not on the banned list is stunning.

[stotty]

It's going to be interesting how this plays out. Evidence is coming to light which shows less innocence than the many who rushed to Sharapova's defence thought. All eyes will be on the Tennis Federation right now. Are they going to let a plausible story win them over, or will they set an example?

An example is the only way to go in my view. They simply must draw a line right here and now.

[nickw]

It's going to be interesting how this plays out. Evidence is coming to light which shows less innocence than the many who rushed to Sharapova's defence thought. All eyes will be on the Tennis Federation right now. Are they going to let a plausible story win them over, or will they set an example?

An example is the only way to go in my view. They simply must draw a line right here and now.

Yep, I think there's more to come out with this story, just doesn't add up at the moment. Agree, they should come down hard here. Let's see, but if their pathetic lack of action regards all the match fixers is anything to go by, then Sharapova will be back for Miami with a public apology from the federation.