Foul!

John Whittingdale has called for an urgent investigation into the British anti-doping watchdog’s response to allegations a doctor had prescribed banned performance-enhancing drugs to a sportsman, reported the Irish Times. The Culture, Media and Sport Secretary said he was “shocked and deeply concerned” by reports in The Sunday Times that the doctor, named by the newspaper as Dr Mark Bonar, had been secretly filmed allegedly discussing working with numerous professional athletes who used banned treatments. London-based Dr Bonar denied the allegations when they were put to him by the newspaper and said he had not breached rules laid out by the General Medical Council (GMC). According to The Sunday Times , UK Anti-Doping (UKAD), the publicly-funded watchdog, was given “evidence” of the activities two years ago but failed to take action. UKAD officials confirmed they received information from the sportsman, however the body said the doctor fell outside their jurisdiction and they did no...

As published in Malay Mail today HARESH SAYS by Haresh Deol A SENIOR official claims a senior colleague suggested to “hide or tamper” documents. On any other day, such accusations will warrant a full investigation. But in the case of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), it was a revelation that was video recorded and presumably kept aside.  Malay Mail had last Saturday revealed AFC financial director Bryan Kuan Wee Hoong, in a video recording on July 26, 2012, claimed AFC general secretary Datuk Alex Soosay said “protect me” before suggesting “can you tamper or hide documents that relate to me”. Kuan had, in the video, said the conversation between him and Soosay took place at the AFC House in Bukit Jalil on July 23, 2012, three days before former Fifa investigator Michael John Pride recorded the statement. This was during the 2012 audit by PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC). Kuan refused to talk when contacted last week. Soosay vehemently denied...

Press release by World Badminton Federation    EIGHT-MONTH SANCTION FOR DOPING VIOLATION Malaysian player, Lee Chong Wei, has received an eight-month sanction for an anti-doping regulation violation. This sanction, imposed by the BWF Doping Hearing Panel, has resulted from an Adverse Analytical Finding of Lee’s sample taken at the BWF World Championships last 30 August in Denmark. That sample contained Dexamethasone, a Specified Substance prohibited "in competition”, the source of which was a contaminated casing(s) of a gelatin capsule(s) containing a food supplement that Lee had been taking. Appearing before the BWF Doping Hearing Panel on 11 April, Lee accepted that Dexamethasone was present in his sample and that he had consequently committed an anti-doping violation under regulation 2.1 of the BWF Anti-Doping Regulations (2009). His argument was that he did so inadvertently and that either no sanction should take place according to Clause 10.5....

Comment by Tony Mariadass tmariadass@gmail.com HAS Lee Chong Wei courted more trouble pending his hearing by the Badminton World Federation (BWF) doping panel in December by sparring with national players at Juara Stadium in Bukit Kiara on Monday? Chong Wei is under provisional suspension after his A and B samples were positive for banned substance dexamethasone – a drug used to aid an athlete’s rehabilitation, which is permitted outside competition because it is not performance-enhancing. He tested positive at the World Championships in Copenhagen in August. Although it is only a provisional suspension, BA of Malaysia (BAM) should have known better than create any ripples which may see BWF looking at the situation as a direct defiance of the ban. Chong Wei’s intentions may be noble – to help his teammates prepare for the Axiata Cup (Nov 26–Dec 7) and Macau Open (Nov 25-30) – but he does not need this unnecessary attention. For all we know, Chong Wei’s unblemished ...

This is by Dr Lim Heng Hong, a former international sports doping control officer which appeared on Malaysiakini. It was in the mid-80s when I first got involved with dope testing in sports. When I was first instructed to test a group of bodybuilders for using performance-enhancing drugs, I headed off to the library to learn how to go about it. With a little rudimentary knowledge, I sent a letter to a professor at St Thomas’ College in the UK for some radioimmunoassay kits that he sent back to me in quick time. With the help of the radiochemistry department at our Institute of Medical Research, I began this interesting journey into the world of dope testing in sports. That journey took me to several foreign lands, and many competitions over 20 or so years. I was doing the most altruistic work one can imagine, to catch those who cheat in sports. I was involved in doping controls in SEA, the Asian and Commonwealth Games and a few other world championships. Let me say also th...

PRESS RELEASE Tuesday 11 November, 2014 BWF ‘PROVISIONALLY SUSPENDS’ LEE CHONG WEI Malaysian player, Lee Chong Wei, has been provisionally suspended by the Badminton World Federation due to an apparent anti-doping regulation violation. The world-governing body has imposed this suspension due to an Adverse Analytical Finding of a sample taken at the BWF World Championships in August. The BWF has referred the matter to the BWF Doping Hearing Panel and, in due course, the Chair of the Panel will set the time, date and location of a hearing. The Panel will determine whether or not the athlete has committed an anti-doping regulation violation. In accordance with Clause 14.4.1 of the BWF Anti-Doping Regulations, and following the imposition of the provisional suspension, the BWF and the member association – the Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) – are now able to publicly identify the player involved in this matter. The Provisional Suspension...

At this stage I have commented on all that I can comment on. The rest of what I may have to say on the matter, which is of any substance or of any consequence, for the benefit of the athlete's defense, will be heard by the international federation's hearing panel. To comment any further would be highly inappropriate in disrespecting the federation's procedur es and may undermine our athlete's prospects at the hearing. I fully understand and respect the public's desire to be informed but to strike a proper balance between that need, and the critical need to preserve the integrity of our ongoing detailed investigations into the matter is of paramount importance. Also important is our athlete's right to his privacy in the face of such a massive challenge to his good name and reputation, and it must be said, to his very livelihood. I am aware of some digits that seem compelled to point themselves in our direction, with an apparent desire to apportion blame on a ...

UPDATE Oct 21 (11.35am): NST quoted a BAM official saying a top national shuttler is involved in the fiasco. Read more here . --- KUALA LUMPUR: After Malaysia’s wushu exponent Tai Cheau Xuen, another Malaysian athlete has failed a drug test, the second doping case within a month.  The athlete was one of those randomly picked up for an anti-doping test. Malaysian officials are now waiting for the results on the B sample before making any announcement.  The athlete also took part in the Asian Games but was not among the gold medallists in Incheon, South Korea, so Malaysia’s ranking in the Games will not be affected.  Read more here . Those in the industry know who is involved. But could it be more than meets the eye? Jeng, jeng, jeng... To be fair, let's wait for the results of the B sample before making any judgements. Till then, majulah sukan untuk negara.

UPDATE 2.29pm : Local athletes still using banned substance, says Dr Ramlan Aziz as reported here . Also, Malaysian Cycling Federation deputy president Naim Mohammad rubbished suggestions cycling should be removed from the Olympics as seen here . ------ Below is the observation made by former National Sports Council & National Sports Institute director general (later CEO) Dr Ramlan Aziz over Lance Armstrong's ( pic ) admission. Ramlan is currently the special advisor to the Youth and Sports Minister. "Lance Armstrong's candid admission to Oprah Winfrey is a mind-boggling revelation indeed. After all that time, money and effort spent in trying to defend himself, he finally came clean. Jaws on the ground time, this is...as Yoda would say. The non-analytical findings gleaned from a well-concerted effort by US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), International Cycling Union (UCI) and World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) to dig deeper and investigate "sampai lubang cac...

"Yes, two athletes who participated in the Pahang Malaysia Games tested positive during an anti-doping test. I'm sorry I can't reveal more than that as we're still investigating the matter." "We've seen such cases in previous Sukma as well." Those were the words of Nishel Kumar, head of ADAMAS. The million-Ringgit Games was held on from July 7 to 16 in various locations in Pahang. Malaysian athletes suspended for taking banned substance is nothing new. Six athletes went "missing" after they failed to turn up for an anti-doping test in May 2012 while two national athletes were involved in an anti-doping issue at the Jakarta SEA Games last December, as previously reported here . HD says : Hopefully the investigations will be wrapped up soon.