Maria Sharapova Announces That She Failed Doping Test

Well, what a dope when its too good to be true, its too good to be true. I don't really have an opinion on it at this time; so many of our professional athletes are on so many new drugs. Enhancement drugs in sports have been around since the 60s.

My question is how in the heck do they think they can pass blood tests. Sure urine tests are a joke; but when they are testing actual blood samples that come direct from the athlete, .... just wow.

Maria Sharapova said Monday that she had been notified by the International Tennis Federation that she tested positive for a banned substance at the Australian Open in January.

She said she had been taking Mildronate since 2006. Mildronate is also known as Meldonium, which was added to the prohibited list this year.

Sharapova said she received an email from the World Anti-Doping Agency in December that noted changes to tennis’s program for 2016. She said that the email included a link to a list of banned substances, but that she did not look at it.

Last fall, WADA said Meldonium was included on the prohibited list because of evidence of its use by athletes with the intention of enhancing performance. Sharapova is at least the seventh athlete to test positive for the drug this year.

No penalty has yet been announced for Sharapova.

Maria Sharapova

a reply to: ReadLeader


And for those who want to know what Mildronate is:

Link

Mildronate (aka Mildronat, Mildonium) is a nootropic, vasodilator and CNS stimulant that can unlock your intellectual and physical potential. Mildronate is a structural analogue of gamma-butyrobetaine, a substance contained in every cell of the human body. Mildronate restores the balance between oxygen supply and demand in cells, and removes toxic metabolic products accumulated in cells protecting them from damage. It also possesses an invigorating stimulant effect. Oxygen delivery and utilization by both muscle & brain cells is enhanced. Mildronate is one of Latvia's most exported products.
Improves Mental Processes (Memory, Learning, Focus, Concentration, Processing of Information)
Reduces Fatigue, Increases Motivation & Alertness
Improves Athletic Training & Competitive Performance
Improves Microcirculation & Oxygen Delivery

originally posted by: chrismarco
a reply to: ReadLeader



AKA an unfair advantage.

Game, Set & Match!!

a reply to: chrismarco

Before you know it, sodium will be banned


thanks for posting the drug info Chris!

It's probably the pressure of white male patriarchy oppressing women to succeed.

a reply to: ReadLeader
Well, hats off to her for admitting it first off. Most go on year long denial crusades with all the talking heads defending them or attacking them while the athlete fights the ruling while still playing. So way to go MaSH! Upfront, "I did not read the list. Nobody's fault but mine."

The substance wasn't banned until Jan 1, this year. So that is probably going to be a mitigating circumstance. Have you ever seen a list of ban substances for athletes?? It is longer than my Costco receipt! And they are all in the medical terms not "Children's Bayer - 5 mg, you know the, pink ones?" Somebody on her team should have known.

Moral of the story is read your emails from the anti-doping agency!

failed drug test for something she's taken for 10 years legally?
the question is what are pro athletes taking legally to stay competitive?

a reply to: TEOTWAWKIAIFF

Excellant thought here TEOT!

Here is the list of banned substances 2016


Thanks for posting!

a reply to: ReadLeader

For those who may be unfamiliar with this evil-doer, here's a pic of the vile beast :


I tell ya...you can tell just by looking at her that something is amiss!

On a serious note, where can I get some Mildronate. Sounds awesome. I bet sales are rising now that it's well-known as effective enough to be banned by Tennis.

a reply to: Cobaltic1978

They all do something at one point or another...is getting laser vision fair to give you better visual acuity? Tiger had it done for golf....

College students are taking drugs to help them focus...

I don't have a problem with athletes doping. People are always looking for an edge. Only someone in denial thinks all athletes just do laps and hit the gym. Diet and yes performance enhancing drugs are used both for an edge and to overcome injuries.

When your livelihood is on the line, you are going to look for advantages.

I'm not advocating cheating. There is a fine line between looking for that edge and outright cheating.

originally posted by: dogstar23
a reply to: ReadLeader

For those who may be unfamiliar with this evil-doer, here's a pic of the vile beast

:

I tell ya...you can tell just by looking at her that something is amiss!

On a serious note, where can I get some Mildronate. Sounds awesome. I bet sales are rising now that it's well-known as effective enough to be banned by Tennis.

I don't care what anyone says.... there is a god.

originally posted by: dogstar23
a reply to: ReadLeader

For those who may be unfamiliar with this evil-doer, here's a pic of the vile beast

:

I tell ya...you can tell just by looking at her that something is amiss!

On a serious note, where can I get some Mildronate. Sounds awesome. I bet sales are rising now that it's well-known as effective enough to be banned by Tennis.

Oh I'm familiar with the dirty cheat.

a reply to: dogstar23

It was sold as a research chemical for as much as $1000/gram. I'm told it's incredibly potent. As with many of these research chemicals, one tweak of the molecular structure and it becomes legal again.

a reply to: Edumakated

There is a big difference between taking EPO to gain an advantage and taking a mild vascular expander. One is down and out cheating and is widely agreed upon. The other... is in a grey area until they make changes.

Not sure why they would notify the athlete directly. Seems like the coach, team physician, hey, even the nutritionist would also be notified (how many pills do you have take with meals? Which ones interact? etc).

I don't think I will be paying much attention to the French Open this year

Ok,


Tennis like many sports has a drug problem, it was also protocal in the tennis world that a positive test would not be made public. It was known that one of the TOP male players was "likely" caught using something either steroids or EPO and hence he had a 6 month "injury". He was never the same after this layoff.

You only need to look at a number of female players to see that they are not natural. At the end of the day its a business and a paycheck, Nike want winners not also ran for endorsements. The fact that Sharapova has come out about it is nothing more than damage limitation. Just like Lance Armstrong stated the trace of a banned substance in his system was due to cortisol cream that he was using for saddle sores. Look how deep that situation went.

There are pro players that are not on the juice but if you want to be a big hitter (no pun) then you get a good doctor and work around what little doping regulations they put inplace.

The fact she was using this for 10 years tells you that she was looking for a extra edge, what else was used in the off season when doping regs where not around..

You cannot compete with the best athletes in the world unless you get on the juice, there have been numerous situations where athletes have failed tests or where very irregular prior (certain 2012 athletes) to see this. The average joe on the street thinks these athletes are clean as a whistle it is not the case. You do not win you do not get paid..


RA


edit news conference statment from Sharapova

youtu.be...

originally posted by: TEOTWAWKIAIFF
a reply to: ReadLeader
Well, hats off to her for admitting it first off. Most go on year long denial crusades with all the talking heads defending them or attacking them while the athlete fights the ruling while still playing. So way to go MaSH! Upfront, "I did not read the list. Nobody's fault but mine."

The substance wasn't banned until Jan 1, this year. So that is probably going to be a mitigating circumstance. Have you ever seen a list of ban substances for athletes?? It is longer than my Costco receipt! And they are all in the medical terms not "Children's Bayer - 5 mg, you know the, pink ones?" Somebody on her team should have known.

Moral of the story is read your emails from the anti-doping agency!

Do not be so naive, every tiny aspect of her food and training is looked at down to the micro level. She is one of the most highest paid athletes in the world..

On a side note and one I witnessed was early this year I was in Mallorca cycling and there was two world tour cycle teams staying at the hotel. They both had there own chefs and both brought in there own food for meals so they controlled what the riders ate..

Now these where big outfits but not on the same stage or possible finacial situation that Sharapova is in, and it gives you a idea of how serious this stuff is taken even in the lesser known sports.

I cannot buy the excuse of "we did not know".. Think about what her yearly earnings must be, 10 million with endorsements ?? maybe more. I am sure everyone that needed to know did.

I will also add, does she come across as someone that is lackadaisical in her approach to the sport and her training??..

RA

a reply to: ReadLeader
Every place I look I see cheaters, liars, deceivers, law breakers and thieves getting ahead, telling us what to do, and screwing us while those that play by the rules get screwed. Yes it is just a Tennis Player, but it still pisses me off.

As Dylan said "When you gonna wake up".

a reply to: slider1982

Would it not be in Team Sharapova's best interest to not let their star get banned??

I've watched enough cycling to know what the upper echelon does to win. No, not quite naïve either that "everybody else is doing it" either (what does Serena take??). Sometimes the rules change and if you are stuck in the "business as usual" mode there is a chance you'll get busted by a small mistake. It has happened before with cold medicine and allergy medicine (which why I can't go into Walgreens and buy pseudophed without being put on some watch list).

Besides, I want to give her the benefit of the doubt! Do I have to quote the swimsuit picture again!

originally posted by: TEOTWAWKIAIFF
a reply to: slider1982

Would it not be in Team Sharapova's best interest to not let their star get banned??

Its in their best interests for her to win.....

Taken from the BBC tennis page..

What is meldonium?

It is meant for angina patients but athletes like it because it helps their endurance and ability to recover from big efforts.

It is on the banned list now because Wada started seeing it in lots of samples and found it does have performance-enhancing properties. It was then added to Wada's 'watchlist' for over a year. The decision to ban it was communicated last autumn and it was added to the banned list on 1 January.

Made in Latvia, it is widely available - without prescription and at low cost - in many east European countries but it is not licensed in most western countries.

It is widely thought that hundreds of athletes have been using it and there are a lot more cases in the pipeline.

www.bbc.co.uk...

Seems ex pros are not happy either, how relevent Capriati statement is I have no clue but this seems to be the overiding feeling in the tennis world

Jennifer Capriati ‏@JenCapriati 37m37 minutes ago

What's the point of someone taking a heart medicine that helps your heart recover faster unless you have a heart condition? Is thataccurate?





RA