Monday, June 12, 2006

Well Mister Richard Pound?

From the Canadian Press (CP) - Think Don's gonna have a comment on this?

NHLers come up clean

1,406 drug tests this season
By PIERRE LEBRUN

(CP) - There were no positive drug tests among the 1,406 administered under the NHL's new anti-doping program, The Canadian Press has learned.

Sources confirmed no violations were found after doping tests began in January under a program jointly run by the league and the NHL Players' Association. It's the first season the NHL has had an anti-doping program.

A first-time offender under the league's policy faces a 20-game suspension. The ban is increased to 60 games for a second offence while a third offence means a permanent suspension.

Dick Pound, head of the World Anti-Doping Agency, wasn't immediately available for comment Monday.

Pound said earlier this year that NHL's anti-doping program was "very seriously flawed."

He also made headlines last November during a speech in London, Ont., when he claimed one third of NHL players were likely taking performance enhancing substances. Players as well as league and union officials unanimously denied his claims.

Defenceman Bryan Berard of the Columbus Blue Jackets and Colorado Avalanche goalie Jose Theodore both failed out-of-competition tests administered by their respective national anti-doping organizations. But neither was suspended by the league because the failed tests didn't come under the NHL program.

Berard's urine test on Nov. 12 showed traces of the steroid 19-norandrosterone. He was banned from international competition for two years. He tested by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency because the blue-liner was on the U.S. Olympic hockey preliminary roster released last September.

Theodore, who was on Canada's preliminary 81-man Olympic eligibility list but not named to the final squad, failed a doping test Dec. 9. The urine sample showed Finasteride, a masking agent for steroids that is also commonly found in hair-restoration drugs. Theodore used the hair product propecia and that's what led to the failed doping test. He had been taking the drug for years didn't realize it contained a banned substance.

2 comments:

  1. Des this prove the NHL is clean or does it prove the NHL drug testing cannot catch anybody?

    Given two positive tests in the pre-Olympic days (although one was for a performance enhancing hair growth tonic) I think I expect the answer is a bit of both.

    Most of the NHL is clean (as far as the limited scope of drugs they test for) and anyone else knew how to beat a test.

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  2. I believe you are far more correct than Mister Pound's statement that "30% of NHL Players are using banned substances." Is Sudafed used? Sure. Is Sudafed abused? I suspect not.

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