Maria Sharapova Fails Drug Test

[Eman]

Would have been more interesting if it was low dose test swimming around in her system...

Maria Sharapova failed a drug test at Australian Open

Meldonium is not something I've heard of before myself.

Mildronate (Meldonium) in professional sports - monitoring doping control urine samples using hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography - high ... - PubMed - NCBI

 

[Millard]

WADA's ban on meldonium just became effective on January 1, 2016. Prior to that, its use by athletes was perfectly fine:

PED's for the Endurance Athlete.

 

[Millard]

"Meldonium has generally been used by athletes in various sports for its mild stimulant-like properties. It is a relatively safe and non-toxic drug. Athletes have used it in performance-enhancing dosages of 1000-2000mg/day in divided dosages preferably prior to training in order to take advantage of its stimulant properties.

"Meldonium was first developed and marketed by the Latvia-based pharmaceutical company Grindeks. It has been used clinically as an anti-ischemic drug to treat patients with angina and myocardial infarction. Of interest to athletes is the finding that it consistently and significantly improves exercise tolerance. Some pharmaceutical companies have recently marketed it explicitly as a performance-enhancing drug. It’s also used as a “smart drug” by non-athletes. Athletes have been using it for over 5 years."

Source: Performance-Enhancing Drugs Used by Elite Athletes That Are Surprisingly Legal - Roidvisor - Your reliable guide in Steroids

 

[Eman]

WADA's ban on meldonium just became effective on January 1, 2016. Prior to that, its use by athletes was perfectly fine:

PED's for the Endurance Athlete.

Yeah one of the articles I read mentioned it had just been added... Has anyone heard of it before? I am always interested in hearing about the new additions to the banned substance list.

 

[Thenewera]

I find it wrong that it was added in January and she was banned because of... For all we know, the lady could not have been informed. I'm not sure of the half life, but is it possible it could have not been out of her system?

 

[Millard]

I find it wrong that it was added in January and she was banned because of... For all we know, the lady could not have been informed. I'm not sure of the half life, but is it possible it could have not been out of her system?

The highest-paid female athlete in the world for several years running should have had someone on the payroll to keep track of these things. Ignorance doesn't usually go over very well in these cases especially when it involves uber-wealthy athletes with every means to keep track of the changes. Since it's the well-liked and highly marketable Maria Sharapova, this case may be different. Keep in mind that she hasn't been banned yet.

Having said that, the Sharapova case highlights the arbitrary and capricious nature of anti-doping rules. A drug is morally acceptable for years and all of a sudden it is morally objectionable. How fair is that?

 

[Eman]

I see one of my favorite phrases included in the first article - "inadvertent use" leads into another article that delves into that subject you guys might find interesting.

http://www.msn.com/en-au/news/world/maria-sharapova-can-expect-at-least-a-two-year-drug-ban-leading-sports-doctor-peter-brukner-says/ar-AAgvh3I

Notification: Policy: URL Filtering

 

[jaymaximus]

The sad thing is a lot of BBs and athletes will take whatever their trainers tell them. They trust that they know the rules. I have a friend who runs a gym / training center for a bunch of NFL Players and he's told me they just dont ask...

 

[Bob Dole]

Meldonium is not something I've heard of before myself.

I have some on order, but has been hella slow coming from Russia. They did say it could take 30 days to arrive. I am convinced its being swam over to America. lol

 

[Millard]

The addition of meldonium to WADA's 2015 Monitoring Program meant that athletes were tested for it but not penalized if they tested positive last year.

In other words, WADA has a long list of athletes who they knew were regularly using meldonium by the time it became "illegal" in January 2016. It seems obvious to me that the recent failed tests were politically-motivated and targeted.

WADA targeted Russian athletes known to have used meldonium expecting to catch many. This was done so that they could justify its current suspension of all Russian athletes from the Olympics and to convince the general public that its anti-doping testing program is effective. Sharapova is the token high-profile athlete chosen by WADA to highlight the doping "problem" in Russia and provide free positive PR for WADA moral agenda.

WADA is just playing games.

 

[Millard]

Widespread use of meldonium among elite athletes, research shows
Up to 490 athletes may have been taking meldonium during Baku 2015 European Games

Source: Widespread use of meldonium among elite athletes, research shows

The use of meldonium--the substance taken by tennis star Maria Sharapova--is widespread among elite athletes, reveals research published online in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

The findings, which draw on information volunteered by athletes and individual medical teams, and lab data on anti-doping tests from the Baku 2015 European Games, indicate that up to 490 athletes may have been taking meldonium during the competition.

The research, which was carried out on behalf of the European Olympic Committees, contributed to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) taking the decision to ban the use of meldonium in competitive sport as of January 1 this year.

Earlier this week, Ms Sharapova admitted that she had tested positive for meldonium after the introduction of the WADA ban.

The research highlights that at the time of the Baku 2015 European Games:

• 13 medallists or competition winners were taking meldonium
• 66 athletes tested positive for meldonium
• Meldonium was detected in athletes competing in 15 of the 21 sports in competition
• Meldonium use was significantly under reported by athletes

Meldonium use by athletes at the Baku 2015 European Games. Adding data to Ms Maria Sharapova’s failed drug test case

Source: BMJ Blogs: BJSM blog – social media's leading SEM voice » Blog Archive » Meldonium use by athletes at the Baku 2015 European Games. Adding data to Ms Maria Sharapova’s failed drug test case

The aim of this report is to identify the prevalence of meldonium use in the 5632 athletes competing in the Baku 2015 European Games held in Azerbaijan from 12-28 June 2015, with the purpose of contributing to the surveillance of substances listed on the 2015 WADA Monitoring Program.

...

The laboratory findings of 66 positive results for meldonium out of 762 (8.7%) samples. and the active surveillance undertaken by the EOC Medical and Anti-Doping Commission, show the widespread use of this drug by athletes competing at the Baku 2015 European Games. These findings highlight the excessive and inappropriate use and prescribing of this prescription drug in a generally healthy athlete population.

Subsequent to these findings, meldonium has been included as a prohibited substance on the 2016 WADA Prohibited List. The report from the Baku Games would have been a contributing source of surveillance reviewed by WADA in the decision process to determine the status of meldonium.

 

[Millard]

WADA ADDS PERFORMANCE ENHANCING DRUG TO BANNED LIST AFTER PCC FUNDED STUDY

Source: WADA ADDS PERFORMANCE ENHANCING DRUG TO BANNED LIST AFTER PCC FUNDED STUDY

October 22, 2015

Michael Pearlmutter
Partnership for Clean Competition
Executive Director

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – When the 2016 WADA Prohibited List of performance enhancing substances and methods was released earlier this month, mildronate (meldonium) was a notable new addition to the list. Earlier this year, a special research project funded, in part, by the Partnership for Clean Competition, was tasked with evaluating global athlete usage of mildronate, which was not previously prohibited, to determine if the rates of use indicated any potential performance-enhancing concerns. Analysis of 8,300 random, anonymous urine samples collected at doping control sessions revealed that 182 (2.2%) contained the energy-shifting drug mildronate, a substance first discovered and used in the 1980s as a cardioprotective agent.

"From an anti-doping perspective, the 2.2% rate in this study was concerning," said Dr. Larry Bowers, Chairperson of the PCC Scientific Board, "This figure represents more than twice the overall rate of laboratory findings for a single drug than any of the substances on the Prohibited List."

While mildronate was not on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Prohibited List at the time of the study, it was included in the WADA substance monitoring program in order to assess its prevalence and misuse in sport. The results of the special research project were provided to WADA as part of the monitoring program.

"This project shows both the impact of our work and the quality of the PCC funding process. A substance with this high a prevalence needs to be identified quickly through a flexible research funding process. Thankfully, we were able to respond to a potential situation within weeks and the results were known less than one month later," said Michael Pearlmutter, Executive Director of the PCC.

This special research project was conducted by five scientists led by Dr. Mario Thevis, who reviewed and tested thousands of urine samples stored at the WADA lab in Cologne, Germany in order to identify how many athletes may be using the substance for its potential performance-enhancing characteristics rather than its intended medical purpose. The study results showed that the use of mildronate was not limited to a particular sport or group of sports, but was found in a wide range of samples.

 

[Millard]

"...in 724 of 4316 urine samples, the Moscow researchers found meldonium - that means 17% positive tests - in other words, almost 1 in 5 Russian athletes had traces of meldonium in their bodies."

 

[_BeastMode]

This is a good example how drugs aren't always enough...in the end, genetics prevails. She could have taken test, tren, and winny but still wouldn't be enough to beat Serena.

 

[John Bahlmer]

There nothing better for scientific progress than the banning of an in-demand product.

Fake-weed (cannibinoids), for example. They ban one compound, the manufacturers respond by making ten more. They ban those ten, the manufacturers respond by making a 100 more.

Hypothetically, they discover that one of those hundred chemicals has an extremely unique property. The result-a new class of drugs.

Its the same with performance enhancing drugs-as long as sports remains a multi-billion dollar a year industry, the demand for novel sports enhancing compounds will be there as well. They will keep making more, and more, and more; and when one of them is discovered to be unique or more useful compared to the rest, it will find its place in the hands of the un-tested, un-professional community. If its really special, the pharmaceutical companies will make a spin-off and put it to medical usage.