Oops!! Maria Sharapova failed a drug test at the OZ Open

[malaise]

http://www.bbc.com/sport/tennis/35750285
<snip>
Former world number one Maria Sharapova has revealed she failed a drugs test at the Australian Open.

The Russian, 28, tested positive for meldonium, a substance she has been taking since 2006 for health issues.

Sharapova, a five-time Grand Slam champion, is provisionally suspended from 12 March pending further action.

"I did fail the test and take full responsibility for it," said Sharapova, who won the Wimbledon title as a 17-year-old in 2004.

"For the past 10 years I have been given a medicine called mildronate by my family doctor and a few days ago after I received a letter from the ITF [International Tennis Federation] I found out it also has another name of meldonium, which I did not know."

Sharapova's lawyer, John Haggerty, told Sports Illustrated he was attempting to speak to the ITF because "we think there is a laundry list of extremely mitigating circumstances that once taken into consideration would result in dramatically reducing any sanction that they might want to impose on Maria".

[Renew Deal]

1. Would she be ill if she didn't take it?

[malaise]

2. Don't know

I didn't get that impression from the part of her press conference I saw

[cwydro]

3. Wth is Meldonium?

Though I gotta wonder...a young, healthy, professional athlete is a woman with health issues?

I've never had to take a prescription drug in my life, unless very short term for antibiotics or some such.

I'm in my 50s. Aspirin and benedryl are my only otc pharmaceuticals.

A long day gardening may cause me to break out the Advil PM, but that's it.

[joeybee12]

4. She had shoulder surgery that sidelined her for a year

From the article I read, it's a very common drug used in Russia and other former eastern bloc countries, but not approved in the US. Just became banned January 1, 2016, so she's been taking it for years without being in trouble for it.

[malaise]

6. Russian athletes are facing serious bans in several sports

I'm sure there's politics but there are lots of their athletes using drugs as well

[joeybee12]

7. I wonder what those other drugs are...

The one Maria used was only banned this year...for tennis...not sure if it had been banned earlier in other sports.

[malaise]

10. I'm looking it up because the clamp down last year was widespread all the way up to Federations and

Associations.
I suspect the investigations just reached tennis by the end of last year although athletes in all sports are tested regularly. There was also a hint of what's to come related to match fixing in men's tennis.

[joeybee12]

13. Oh yeah, the tennis authorities tried to pooh-pooh that match fixing

But you know it is probably fairly prevelant

[malaise]

14. Tennis and cricket are designed for gambling

Sport has always been intertwined with gambling these days because of the internet. Spot fixing is the big thing and there are many criminals offering big money for the right 'double fault' or foot fault.

[cwydro]

8. Serena can kick her butt into Siberia and back.

Meldonium or not lol!

[malaise]

11. Hehehehehehe

and then some

[malaise]

5. Here

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meldonium

This one is closely linked to Russia and Eastern Europe and I have no doubt that the spate of investigations re positive tests brought this one to the fore. All Russian athletes are being watched carefully but the truth is that athletes in a plethora of sports use performance enhancing drugs.

Amazing - all that and she folded like a pack of cards when facing the great Serena. Pardon me while I giggle. Maybe now she won't earn more money than Serena - she never earned that from tennis

[cwydro]

9. I just read your post after posting mine.q

Heheh...we're always on the same page on this subject.

[malaise]

12. Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaaah - that's the truth

[cwydro]

15. The money she earns is simply from her looks.

Not her athletic prowess.

Sure, she's a good tennis player. But not a great.

There are only a few greats. King, Court, Chrissie, Martina, Henin, Steffi.

Serena is probably going to be the greatest of the greats.

Sharapova, no.

[malaise]

16. Yep

Venus won more than Henin

[cwydro]

18. Venus was alway my favorite actually.

But maybe that's simply because I'm the elder sister in a tennis family. And my younger sister usually beat me.

But I didn't know Venus won more than Henin. I wasn't a fan of Henin.

I can't wait to tell my mother this. She loves Venus, but for some reason is not a fan of Serena.

That being said - she cheers every time Serena wins.

Mom was a seniors doubles champ back in the 70s in our state.

[malaise]

20. The sister after me was way better than the rest of us

She still plays with her friends.
Doubles Champ is serious business.

[Ex Lurker]

22. You're selling her way too short

She's won 5 grand slams, and won at least 1 singles title in 12 consecutive years. Only Navratilova, Evert, and a couple of others have longer unbroken streaks. This despite having three shoulder surgeries, as well as other injuries. Yes, Serena has her number, but she is still one of the best in the world right now, and arguably one of the best all time. Perhaps not in the top 5 or 10 best ever, but right there in the next tier.

As for the drug, it's used to treat heart failure. Healthy athletes take it to improve their strength and endurance.

[cheapdate]

26. WTF?

She's considered one of the greats. She's won 35 singles titles and five Grand Slam titles—two at the French Open and one each at the Australian Open, Wimbledon, and US Open. She was ranked #1 in the world at age 18 and held that ranking off and on for the next 7 years.

[TBF]

17. Damage control - the sanctions are 2 yrs vs. 4 yrs.

She's 28 now. If it's 2 years she could come back. 4 yrs no way ... But then again she has so much money from endorsements that she may decide to just bow out.

[malaise]

19. You're right

I was never a fan

[Lucinda]

21. Seems ridiculous since it was just added to the banned list

and she has been taking it for a decade

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

23. Her coach and trainer screwed this one up.

They should know what she takes, and they should know the rule changes. She was not well served.

[ileus]

24. Why are we supposed to be celebrating this?

[TBF]

25. It probably should have been posted in sports

and certainly isn't intended as a celebration. Some of us follow tennis and find it an interesting story. As for politics it certainly is possible to talk about professional sports players (who are workers), their unions, and their conditions, but I tend not to get into that often because folks don't have a lot of empathy for them considering the wages they receive (especially at Sharapova's level).

[malaise]

27. Celebrating - as one informed person put it

replace her name with Serena's and let's have a discussion
http://www.sportsgrid.com/tennis/maria-sharapova-could-lose-close-to-100-million-in-endorsements-after-ped-admission/

Mildronate is an anti-ischemic drug added to the World Anti-Doping Agency’s banned substances list in January. Meaning that three months ago it was completely legal, due to the fact that it couldn’t be detected, and the ADA didn’t know about it. The drug increases oxygen flow in the blood, helps athletes recover from injury quickly and provides stamina.

“I had legally been taking this for ten years,” Sharapova said. “I know many of you thought I was retiring but if I was ever going to announce my retirement it would probably not be in a downtown Lost Angeles hotel with this fairly ugly carpet.”

What? You’re not really cutting a very sympathetic character, are you dear? Entitled much?

Sharapova admitted to receiving the notification that the substance had been banned, but just ignored it. Actually she said that she “didn’t click the link” for details, but come on. Sharapova:

“I take responsibility for my professionalism in my job and I made a big mistake. I know there will be consequences and I don’t want to end my career this way. I really hope I will be given another chance to play tennis again. I can’t blame anyone but myself. I have let my fans down.”

And that’s the thing. This may seem like a small deal — using a drug that was only banned on Jan. 1. But the idea that Sharapova used a PED at all, legal or not, turns off a lot of people. Has she done it her entire career? Is she a synthetic sports star?

Sharapova has been injured several times in her career, and likewise has had several comebacks. Time for her to just quietly retire — as soon as she can find some tasteful carpeting.

Read Capriati's comments please

Bottom line - she has been using a known (in Russian circles) PED.