Threat to to raise Ferdinand's ban
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (Reuters) - Danish sports minister Brian Mikkelsen has called for Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand's doping ban to be increased to two years.
The England international was given an eight-month ban after missing a routine drugs test, but has 13 days to lodge an appeal against the suspension handed out by the English FA.
However Mikkelsen, a World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) executive board member, says he will be pushing for Ferdinand's case to be taken to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
"I think it is a solid case and the goal would be to raise Rio Ferdinand's quarantine to two years," Mikkelsen told local new agency Ritzau.
"The sentence isn't satisfying. The same rules that apply in other sports should, of course, apply in football also."
Tough new laws to combat doping in sport were set in place in March last year at a summit in the Danish capital.
WADA's code was ushered in unanimously by sports federations worldwide and received strong backing from governments globally.
Among its measures was a mandatory two-year ban for serious doping offences, barring 'exceptional circumstances'.
Ferdinand, at 30 million pounds ($54.65 million) the world's most expensive defender, was charged by the FA with a "failure or refusal" to take the drugs test at United's training ground.
He then passed the test 36 hours after he should have taken the original one.
