Re: Essendon
Posted: Wed Oct 16, 2019 8:42 amThe substance that convicted 34 Essendon players in one the AFL's biggest doping scandal was reportedly only listed as a banned substance the day before the club 'self reported' its supplements program.
The Essendon players were suspended for being injected with Thymosin Beta-4, which was on the world agency's ban list at the time.
But it wasn't added to the Australian agency's 'check your substances' website until 2013, according to a Herald Sun report.
That was long after the injections stopped and just one day before Essendon reported itself to the AFL.
Scientist Bob O’Dea told the Herald Sun: “The evidence of a stitch-up is compelling”.
ASADA responded to the reports, saying it does not matter that the substance was not on that particular website, it was still banned by the world agency.
7NEWS reporter Georgia Comensoli told The Latest that the report raises a number of questions regarding the doping scandal.
"At the time 34 players were suspended in the season of 2016, each and every one of them could sue for a loss of income, for reputational damages, and other damages that have come from (the scandal),” Comensoli said.
“Jobe Watson in 2012 was awarded the Brownlow Medal, one of the most coveted medals in the AFL season. He was stripped of that medal because of this saga, he gave it back, does this mean that Jobe is able to ask for that medal back?
“Also, that medal was then awarded to the two joint runners-up, Trent Cotchin and Sam Mitchell, does this mean that they’re now stripped of that medal, there are so many questions that have come from this report.”
7NEWS AFL reporter Tom Browne joined Sunrise on Wednesday morning to discuss the latest developments, declaring Essendon players and officials should have known to check the WADA site before taking any substances.
“I’m not overly surprised by this article, the simple truth is that this substance, Thymosin Beta-4, the Court of Arbitration for Sport was comfortably satisfied the 34 players took it and that was banned by WADA in 2010,” Browne said.
“The issue still clearly is whether the website matters what ASADA is saying in an advisory capacity, when indeed it’s a banned substance.
“I don’t think Essendon’s still aggrieved by this, they’ve moved on, as have the AFL, I think this is a highly technical and isolated argument.”
Sunrise co-host David Koch hit back, arguing it’s a stupid argument from ASADA to expect young players not to trust the list of banned substances published on the Australian website.
“So ASADA is saying it still stands because you shouldn’t have been checking our website, you should be checking the global one.
“That seems a stupid argument to me to expect young players to actually check an international site rather than to be able to depend on their own ASADA site here in Australia, that showed that it wasn’t banned when they were given the injections.”
However Browne insisted that AFL players are taught that they should be checking the WADA site for such matters, not necessarily the ASADA one.
“It’s clearly the onus of the club, the officials and the players to also check the WADA website, they’re taught that. It’s also the obligation of the club to know what they were taking and Essendon to this day suggests they don’t have records in regards to what they took.”
Former head of ASADA Richard Ings hit back at the Herald Sun report, declaring the Australian doping agency's actions had no bearing on the eventual decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
“None of which impacts on the decision reached by CAS,” Ings wrote on Twitter.
“WADA determine what’s banned. Not ASADA.
“And no one argues successfully that TB-4 is not banned.
“EFC34 were well represented at both hearing. They lost.”
https://7news.com.au/sport/afl/essendon ... XKpYFSmXE4
The Essendon players were suspended for being injected with Thymosin Beta-4, which was on the world agency's ban list at the time.
But it wasn't added to the Australian agency's 'check your substances' website until 2013, according to a Herald Sun report.
That was long after the injections stopped and just one day before Essendon reported itself to the AFL.
Scientist Bob O’Dea told the Herald Sun: “The evidence of a stitch-up is compelling”.
ASADA responded to the reports, saying it does not matter that the substance was not on that particular website, it was still banned by the world agency.
7NEWS reporter Georgia Comensoli told The Latest that the report raises a number of questions regarding the doping scandal.
"At the time 34 players were suspended in the season of 2016, each and every one of them could sue for a loss of income, for reputational damages, and other damages that have come from (the scandal),” Comensoli said.
“Jobe Watson in 2012 was awarded the Brownlow Medal, one of the most coveted medals in the AFL season. He was stripped of that medal because of this saga, he gave it back, does this mean that Jobe is able to ask for that medal back?
“Also, that medal was then awarded to the two joint runners-up, Trent Cotchin and Sam Mitchell, does this mean that they’re now stripped of that medal, there are so many questions that have come from this report.”
7NEWS AFL reporter Tom Browne joined Sunrise on Wednesday morning to discuss the latest developments, declaring Essendon players and officials should have known to check the WADA site before taking any substances.
“I’m not overly surprised by this article, the simple truth is that this substance, Thymosin Beta-4, the Court of Arbitration for Sport was comfortably satisfied the 34 players took it and that was banned by WADA in 2010,” Browne said.
“The issue still clearly is whether the website matters what ASADA is saying in an advisory capacity, when indeed it’s a banned substance.
“I don’t think Essendon’s still aggrieved by this, they’ve moved on, as have the AFL, I think this is a highly technical and isolated argument.”
Sunrise co-host David Koch hit back, arguing it’s a stupid argument from ASADA to expect young players not to trust the list of banned substances published on the Australian website.
“So ASADA is saying it still stands because you shouldn’t have been checking our website, you should be checking the global one.
“That seems a stupid argument to me to expect young players to actually check an international site rather than to be able to depend on their own ASADA site here in Australia, that showed that it wasn’t banned when they were given the injections.”
However Browne insisted that AFL players are taught that they should be checking the WADA site for such matters, not necessarily the ASADA one.
“It’s clearly the onus of the club, the officials and the players to also check the WADA website, they’re taught that. It’s also the obligation of the club to know what they were taking and Essendon to this day suggests they don’t have records in regards to what they took.”
Former head of ASADA Richard Ings hit back at the Herald Sun report, declaring the Australian doping agency's actions had no bearing on the eventual decision by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
“None of which impacts on the decision reached by CAS,” Ings wrote on Twitter.
“WADA determine what’s banned. Not ASADA.
“And no one argues successfully that TB-4 is not banned.
“EFC34 were well represented at both hearing. They lost.”
https://7news.com.au/sport/afl/essendon ... XKpYFSmXE4