Tennis doping saga could get messy
By Don Riddell, CNN World Sport
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Rusedski maintains his innocence despite testing positive for nandrolone
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LONDON, England -- As a sports broadcaster, you know what question you'll be asked first in the light of a positive drugs test: "do you think he or she did it?"
Increasingly these days it's becoming a harder question to answer. We've known for some time that athletes do cheat, and certainly with the amount of money washing around in many sports there's certainly the incentive.
And of course, anyone caught red-handed immediately denies it. Can you remember the last athlete who put their hands up and said "it's a fair cop"? Exactly. It never happens.
This time though, it seems that Greg Rusedski may be about to do just that. But whatever else he has to say, the tennis governing body might not want to hear.
The ATP has a dreadful record when it comes to drug testing. Last year they were forced to waive charges against seven players who had tested positive for nandrolone.
It was discovered that the results might have been caused by tablets the tour's trainers were handing out to players -- the same argument that Rusedski has used in maintaining his innocence.
But here's the thing: it was never scientifically proven that these tablets were responsible. The mere fact that they might have been was enough to get the charges waived.
Rusedski tested positive just weeks after these tablets were withdrawn last summer. The whole scenario adds weight to the World Anti-Doping Agency's concerns that the tablets were never the source of the contamination.
Scapegoat
But never mind that. Why is it that Rusedski's hearing, scheduled for February 7, is nearly seven months after the positive test. The results would have been known in days.
And why is it that Rusedski claims there are 46 other players who have tested positive for elevated levels of nandrolone since October 2002. And if that is the case -- why is he the scapegoat?
Of course, he may be a straightforward cheat, plain and simple. But the way this case is unfolding, it would be foolish to assume anything.
The strength of any anti-doping agency lies in its determination to act ruthlessly, and to be honest and up front with the sport it's trying to protect. The ATP seems to be lacking here.
But if Rusedski wants answers, he's going to have to provide plenty himself. What supplements did he take, and who provided them?
Either way, this is the last thing the sport needed on the eve of the year's first major. Serena Williams still isn't fully fit, and so there will be no defending champion in the women's draw at the Australian Open.
Former champions Monica Seles, Jennifer Capriati and Mary Pierce are also absent, and on Tuesday Kim Clijsters' participation was thrown into doubt by her withdrawal from the Sydney international.
All the talk ahead of the tournament has nothing to do with Hewitt or Roddick or Agassi, but of drugs. And as scandals go, this has the potential to be more messy than most.
Don Riddell presents World Sport on CNN International at 0930 GMT, 1230 GMT, 1430 GMT, and 2130 GMT daily (also 0030 GMT at weekends and daily in Asia.)
