“I have been able to keep up contact with the UCI, whereas I have struggled to establish continued contact with the International Tennis Federation. In the field of the fight against the doping, there are many who believe but too few who practice.”
Friday, December 28, 2012
Harsh Words
Everyone is talking about Nadal today, but there's a real story that nobody has picked up on. It's a statement by French Anti-Doping Agency (AFLD) president Bruno Genevois:
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Bearing in mind that the AFLD hasn't been granted the ability to test at Roland Garros since 2009 (or other tournaments for that matter), I think his words speak volumes.
ReplyDeleteSen, I know you and I have talked a few times about what process actually transpired in terms of not allowing AFLD to test. The code says AFLD could basically appeal to WADA if they were originally denied access by the ITF, at which point WADA would "consult with" the ITF as to whether supplemental testing would be appropriate.
These comments would seem to make it more likely that the AFLD has pushed the issue with WADA, as opposed to simply being pacified that the ITF was doing adequate testing at RG.
I cannot think of any reason whatsoever (good-faith reason, at least) why the ITF would *not* want the AFLD to conduct testing at the FO. The testing they do is clearly much more thorough than the ITF's.
ReplyDeleteIf Stuart Miller was SERIOUS about catching cheats, instead of serious about doing the BARE MINIMUM, then he would surely WELCOME some extra testing done by another organisation, what with it not eating in to his tiny precious ITF testing budget (which he never meets anyway). If he really wants a clean sport, WHY ON EARTH CEASE CONTACT WITH THIS ORGANISATION? The answer is he doesn't want a clean sport. He wants a sport where nobody gets caught and he avoids bad headlines. If that means it's clean, then great, if it's not clean, then just make sure you don't catch anyone.
SHAME on your STUART MILLER. And Tennis media for ignoring this unbackupable ITF position.
As for Mr Nadal, I was originally very shocked to hear he had withdrawn from the Australian Open. He'd been talking it up as his big return, where he would no doubt bask in the media attention, him returning to the big stage all recovered from his multitude of knee injuries.
ReplyDeleteBut something strange is going on. And now I am not surprised at all and don't know why I was. After all he said in his book that he withdrew from France and Wimbledon 2009 because his parents broke up. So anything is possible. Now Uncle Tony is saying that gruelling 5 setters in the Melbourne heat are a bad way to come back from injury without match praactice. Well Tony, there is *never* a good way to come back from 6 months off.
I think Lopi is right from the previous thread... he knows that the top 3 would slaughter him, if not the likes of Ferrer and Tsonga as well, so sees no point in being on a hiding to nothing. Great "champion values" on show there!
The AO will coincide with the Fuentes trial later in January. Nadal is rumoured to be on Fuente's list of clients. Could it be that he doesn't want to be contesting a grand slam at the same time evidence could be presented in court that links him directly to Spain's (other) notorious doping doctor? Better perhaps to retreat to the seclusion of Mallorca. With the flu.
DeleteGood point, this is a possibility. Although I would be more surprised to see a Spanish court name names, real names, big names, non-cycling names, than I would to see Nadal release a statement tomorrow saying "my stomach will probably be OK by then and I don't care if I lose in the second round in Melbourne because of my bad knees no, so I am recommitting to the AO after all!".
DeleteBut we do live in hope. Let's hope plenty of other Spanish tennis player names come out in this trial too. Including a certain David, perennial grand slam qtr finalist at 31, making more $ than ever before. He will doubtless continue his recent good GS semi final in Australia too, now that Mr Nadal is out.
"After all he said in his book that he withdrew from France and Wimbledon 2009 because his parents broke up."
DeleteHe did not withdraw from the French Open in 2009, I think Soderling beat him that year. He withdrew from Wimbledon because of injury.
If you have the book with you, I would be interested to see the exact quote because I have never heard of the reasons you state as being the primary or only reason for withdrawing from Wimbledon.
Never mind, I found this. I had never heard this before, so thanks.
DeleteRafa Nadal: the real reason I quit Wimbledon in 2009
Read more: http://www.theweek.co.uk/people-news/3009/rafa-nadal-real-reason-i-quit-wimbledon-2009#ixzz2GYLJ1QI1
http://www.theweek.co.uk/people-news/3009/rafa-nadal-real-reason-i-quit-wimbledon-2009#
Spaniard says heartbreak caused by his parents’ divorce ruined his tennis
BY Ben Riley-SmithLAST UPDATED AT 11:12 ON Wed 17 Aug 2011
Tennis star Rafael Nadal has explained for the first time that he withdrew from Wimbledon in 2009 not just because of injury, but because of the impact on his game of his parents' divorce.
The Spaniard had won the tournament the previous year. But he decided not to defend his title after being defeated at the 2009 French Open for the first time ever – a loss of form he puts down to the "heartbreaking" news of his parents' break-up.
"My knees were the immediate reason, but I knew that the root cause was my state of mind," he says in an extract from his autobiography, Rafa: My Story, published by the Daily Telegraph. "My competitive zeal had waned, the adrenalin had dried up."
Nadal believes his inner turmoil created his injuries. "If your head is in permanent stress, you sleep little and your mind is distracted – exactly the symptoms I was showing at that time – the impact on your body is devastating."
Nadal explains how when his father first told him of the marital problems – on the way back from winning the Australian Open in early 2009 – he was left "stunned" and "heartbroken".
"My parents were the pillar of my life and that pillar had crumbled. The continuity I so valued in my life had been cut in half, and the emotional order I depend on had been dealt a shocking blow." Contact with other family members became "awkward and unnatural", while trips to the family home in Porto Cristo, Majorca were "uncomfortable and strange" without his father being there.
Read more: http://www.theweek.co.uk/people-news/3009/rafa-nadal-real-reason-i-quit-wimbledon-2009#ixzz2GYL7HxO2
And in other news.. Serena Williams has had some more foot surgery and has been training in Mauritius.
ReplyDeleteSometime in early December Williams "was treated for a chronic foot disorder which involved minor procedures on both of her great toes," according to Florida podiatrist Jeffrey Rockefeller. "She needs to minimize activity to fully recover."
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/12/19/3148984/serena-has-surgery-on-big-toes.html#storylink=cpy
Is Mauritius the new Kenya? (With its lax dope testing)
DeleteWhy on earth Mauritius? I'm sure it's a lovely place, but she could sit at some and "minimize activity" if she wanted.
enrico maria riva @enricomariariva
ReplyDeleteNadal PR Barbadillo will chat Monday the 31st at 6pm (Rome time) about doping allegations and Rafa real conditions http://bit.ly/WTNM9j
who's alleging that he dopes? Not me!!! It seems they doth protest too much. LOL.
ReplyDeleteIMO Nadal's PR team could've found a better excuse than a mysterious stomach virus infection. Either he isn't 100% fit and wants to avoid to lose face by exiting the AO early or there are "other things" to worry about. The next mandatory event would be Indian Wells in March...
ReplyDeleteI can't help but wonder if Nadal is serving some 'unofficial' drugs ban that the ITF obviously would never want to talk about. His reasons for not competing are beyond ludicrous now.
ReplyDeleteBingo!
DeleteLOL. Nikolay Davydenko:
ReplyDeleteQuestion: Do you think the men’s Tour is going to miss Nadal?
Answer: Me? No! I don’t think so much about that (Nadal’s injury). For sure he will come back for the clay court season. And then he will try to win everything he can. Nadal is Nadal. The fans may miss him but not the players (smiles).
http://thepeninsulaqatar.com/sport/219962-fit-again-davydenko-eyes-injury-free-run.html
UBITENNIS 01/01/2013 13:21 CEST - INTERVIEW
ReplyDeleteBarbadillo: "Nadal wants to come back when he feels well"
"Doping allegations are what annoy Barbadillo the most. He said that whoever dopes must be punished, whatever his nationality but dismissed the idea that the Spanish anti-doping law, perceived as weak, isn't a factor because players are tested by ITF and WADA. Barbadillo urged then the two organizations to list more clearly when and how many times tennis players are tested during the season, in and out of competitions."
http://www.ubitennis.com/english/sport/tennis/2013/01/01/823889-barbadillo_nadal_wants_come_back_when_feels_well.shtml
Here is another story not getting much attention:
ReplyDeletehttp://blogs.bettor.com/Lance-Armstrong-missed-his-last-chance-to-appeal-against-the-UCI-decision-a211514
Happy New Year SNR and THASP! May 2013 be great!
Keep up the great work.
Rock on!