To date, I'm seeing no journalistic outrage that Odesnik is playing in Houston this week. Tennis Talk is reporting his appearance without even mentioning his HGH bust (Thanks TexasTennis). The problem is obvious. Sports journalism is dying. Most "journalists" these days are basically promoters for the sport. That is why tennis has gotten to this point with performance enhancing drugs. Looking the other way at every problem, because you are told not to ruffle any feathers and just build up the events, is eventually going to rot things to the core. I'm pulling for Odesnik, because the farther he goes, the more embarrassing it will be.
Update: Congratulations to Wayne Odesnik for his first round straight set victory! I didn't see it, but I'm sure it was a "powerful" performance.
Update II: Anyone wondering if Odesnik has the ITF by the cojones? I'm not sure what their procedure should be in this situation, but I find it hard to believe that they would just sit there and do nothing (even though they are being helped along by the apathy of sports journalists). Maybe they are worried about what else Odesnik might have to say? Or maybe they are just inept bureaucrats...
That's quite brazen. It just tells you something about how serious the ITF is about doping, when a convicted player can go on and play a tournament, after being caught red-handed.
ReplyDeleteWill be interesting to see if Anthony Galea, a doctor currently under investigation for supplying athletes with HGH and Actovegin who also "treated" Tiger Words, treated any tennis players.
ReplyDeleteThere's another angle to the Odesnik story : what about the other players ? How can they accept to compete, and maybe lose, agains a convicted cheater ? Imagine Odesnik wins his first round. What will the loser say in the press conference ? I don't understand why the other players in the Houston draw stay so quiet. They should at least strike if Odesnik is allowed to play.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree about the outrage, but who's going to be embarrassed? I mean, when? The way you talk it's as if though something soon is going to happen. But nothing is happening. No one is moving towards a tennis "outage of PEDs". It's ridiculous. Wtf is everyone doing?
ReplyDeleteI'm outraged. There is just no excuse to allow Odesnik to play. But I'm not going to root for him so that the WADATF is embarrassed because it doesn't look like that's going to happen anytime soon.
Odesnik is a first round winner...let the chaos begin!
ReplyDeleteWertheim noticed:
ReplyDelete"Who else was surprised to see Wayne Odesnik entered in the draw of the Houston event, which begins today?"
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/jon_wertheim/04/05/best.three/
http://tennistalk.com/en/blog/Cheryl_Murray/20100405/Why_Wayne_Odesnik_is_public_enemy_No._1_right_now
ReplyDeleteThat Cheryl Murray blog is brand new this afternoon after TWO pieces about Houston that mentioned Odesnik without mentioning the hgh.
ReplyDeleteI must say I think Murray is hopeless - (and the others on that site judging by the one who responded to my query by saying she wasn't "commissioned" to write about Odesnik's hgh in covering the Houston tournament and didn't feel "comfortable" covering it). As of this morning, she did not know the ATP doesn't handle drug testing or investigations. Amazing level of ignorance for supposed "tennis journalists."
I must say I couldn't care less about Agassi doing crystal meth or Gasquet or Hingis or anyone else doing cocaine etc. They were idiots. It's irrelevant to doping and certainly didn't help them play tennis better... But I'm mesmerized at the moment by this situation - all that outrage from Federer, Nadal and Navratilova about how Agassi had damaged tennis. Outrage of many fans too.
Where is that outrage now about a caught red handed ped case? I see people saying Odesnik is playing because the ITF is still investigating. Investigating what? He pled guilty in a court of law to possession of a ped - what's to investigate? He should have been suspended that day. I presume he's coming up with a dog ate my homework excuse now which could be investigated but he still should have been suspended. It's just mind blowing.
Texastennis,
ReplyDeleteI agree. What is the ITF investigating? A guilty plea for importation has already been made.
Many commentators don't seem to realize that the mere possession of a banned substance is a violation. Trafficking is also a violation. There is no need to prove use. The ITF's Doping Programme makes this clear:
http://www.itftennis.com/shared/medialibrary/pdf/original/IO_46169_original.PDF
"Doping is defined as the occurrence of one or more of the following (each, an “antidoping rule violation”):
"C.6 Possession of Prohibited Substances and/or Prohibited Methods: C.6.1 Possession by a Player at any time or place of a substance that is prohibited at all times or of a Prohibited Method is an anti-doping rule violation under Article C.6, unless the Player establishes that such Possession is consistent with a therapeutic use exemption granted in accordance with Article E or other acceptable justification.
"C.7 Trafficking or Attempted Trafficking in any Prohibited Substance or Prohibited Method.
The Programme defines Trafficking:
"Trafficking. Selling, giving, administering, transporting, sending, delivering or distributing a Prohibited Substance or Prohibited Method (either physically or by any electronic or other means) by a Player or Player Support Personnel to any third party; provided, however, that this definition shall not include (a) the actions of bona fide medical personnel involving a Prohibited Substance used for genuine and legal therapeutic purposes or other acceptable justification; or (b) actions involving Prohibited Substances which are not prohibited in Out-of-Competition Testing unless the circumstances as a whole demonstrate that such Prohibited Substances were not intended for genuine and legal therapeutic purposes."
What further proof of violation is required by the ITF?
Apparently Odesnik will be issuing a statement tomorrow:
ReplyDeletehttp://twitter.com/sptdlr
Another recognition:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/more-sports/tom-tebbutt/time-to-play-on-clay/article1523376/
"Ominous presence: Wayne Odesnik, who, two weeks ago, pleaded guilty and paid a fine of $8,320 (U.S.) in a court in Brisbane for bringing eight vials of human growth hormone (HGH) into Australia on January 2, defeated Jerzy Janowicz of Poland 6-3, 6-4 in the first round of in the US Clay Courts event in Houston on Monday. The No. 103-ranked Odesnik, 24, will almost certainly be sanctioned with a two-year suspension, in accordance with World Anti-Doping Agency rules, by tennis authorities when appropriate investigations are completed. Any suspension will be retroactive in terms of ranking points and prize money earned so it doesn’t really make sense for Odesnik, who lost to Lleyton Hewitt in his only career ATP final in Houston last year, to be playing the event."
Bonnie Ford:
ReplyDeletehttp://sports.espn.go.com/sports/tennis/news/story?id=5058883
Odesnik declined a phone interview request from ESPN.com, but spoke to a small group of reporters on site after beating wild card Jerzy Janowicz of Poland, 6-3, 6-4. The ATP provided audio of the formal press session, which lasted just under four minutes.
"I'm doing the only thing I can do right now, and that's to focus the best I can on my tennis," Odesnik said. "I've worked extremely hard and I'm looking forward to the clay court season because that's where I usually excel."
I've already posted too much, but I'll note two more things.
ReplyDelete1. From the ITF Programme:
"K.7 Methods of Establishing Facts and Presumptions: The Anti-Doping Tribunal shall not be bound by judicial rules governing the admissibility of evidence. Instead, facts relating to an anti-doping rule violation may be established by any reliable means, including admissions. The following rules of proof shall be applicable at the hearing:
"K.7.4 The facts established by a decision of a court or professional disciplinary tribunal of competent jurisdiction that is not the subject of a pending appeal shall be irrebuttable evidence against the Participant to whom the decision pertained of those facts, unless that Participant establishes that the decision violated principles of natural justice."
2. From the Australian Customs and Border Protection Media Release:
http://www.customs.gov.au/site/100326mediarelease.asp
"Amendments to the Customs Act in 1999 extended the list of substances subject to import control. The importation of restricted substances is prohibited unless the user has a genuine medical need and can provide evidence from a medical practitioner."
Since Odesnik pled guilty, it would appear that he had no evidence of medical need, which means that he would presumably not have recourse to the ITF therapeutic use exemption. That, taken along with K.7.4 of the ITF programme, once again begs the question: What exactly is going on with the ITF investigation?
Under normal circumstances, I would think that the guy was delusional, but I'm actually starting to wonder whether he'll just keep playing while everyone just sits on their hands (or maybe raises their eyebrows a little)? Should be an interesting clay court season...
ReplyDeleteBoth Bonnie Ford and Jon Wertheim have been commenting on Twitter about his inclusion in the Houston draw. Give them a few days - I am sure they both have articles in the works
ReplyDeleteWhy does it take a few days? People jumped all over Agassi instantly....
ReplyDeleteFord did post the piece linked above on espn this evening but Wertheim tweeted that it's all about "due process."
Let me say the ITF already has a guilty plea in hand but due process still requires them to look for any exonerating information? Words fail me...
"Why does it take a few days?"
ReplyDeleteWell, it's worth asking. I don't think they feel like it's all that big a story. At least that's what I would guess. No one really knows Odesnik, so they are just assuming that it will end with a player not even in the top 100 who is an isolated incident - just one bad apple.
Comment here from the loser
ReplyDeletehttp://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,12110_6077995,00.html
All the comments here are spot on. I'm not defending Agassi for his positive drug test but people jumped all over him like crazy when the news came out. The Odesnik story is nearly two weeks old and is far more serious than the Agassi story yet there hasn't been a peep of outrage by anyone other than Roddick about Odesnik's HGH smuggling.
ReplyDeleteThe GOTENNIS blog has a snarky anti-Odesnik headline and story, but they are one of the few covering this: http://tinyurl.com/ykg4yzr
Hopefully ESPN/and/or Wertheim will cover this in depth.
Here we go with the dog ate my homework explanation: two tweets from matt Cronin
ReplyDelete# ITF: Odesnik playing because of due process, which 'can take some time & he has elected not to take a provisional suspension' 16 minutes ago via web
# Wow - Odesnik hires high powered Miami defense attorney Christopher Lyons, who also defended Donte Stallworth and Warren Sapp
I'm starting to think Odesnik must be simpleminded. If he wanted to explain himself, he shouldn't have pled guilty in the first place because as the nice posting yesterday showed a guilty plea in a law court is sufficient evidence. Did he think it would all just go away quietly because it was in Australia? I would gather he did not hire a lawyer until very recently. Can't wait for how this is going to unfold.
Honestly I would kiss the first player who gets caught and says "Ok I did it." (I have a warm and fuzzy feeling towards Agassi on this basis even though he was only doing rec drugs which I don't care about and it took him twelve years - better late than never....)
Here's the ITF story:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.tennis.com/articles/templates/news.aspx?articleid=4849&zoneid=4
ITF: Odesnik not yet guilty of doping offense
Ticker - Tuesday, April 6, 2010
“Odesnik has not as yet been found guilty of a doping offense under the rules of the TADP and therefore is allowed to play. In order not to prejudice the player's ability to defend himself in his criminal case, the TADP decided to await the outcome of those proceedings rather than run concurrently, but began the process immediately once the decision of the Australian Court was taken,” the ITF said. “The player is entitled to put forward a defense and this can take some time and he has elected not to take a provisional suspension. Whether or not we feel this is good for the image of tennis, he has that right and the ITF and ATP have an obligation to honor it. The TADP affords every player the right of due process. We believe that this is in the long-term best interests of everyone concerned.”
http://tennis.fanhouse.com/2010/04/06/tennis-authorities-must-be-on-drugs-to-let-odesnik-play/
ReplyDeleteFrom TennisReporters twitter feed:
ReplyDeleteOdesnik statement: "I have never used nor taken HGH or any other banned substance in my life."
http://twitter.com/TennisReporters
I'm now thinking that Odesnik's guilty plea in Australia was a strategic choice made in order to avoid formal proceeding (i.e., evidence entered into the record and sworn testimony that could be used against him by the ITF). If that's the case, is there then no "irrebuttable evidence against the Participant to whom the decision pertained", according the K.7.4 of the ITF Doping Programme?
ReplyDeleteInteresting comments by Fish here: http://www.gototennisblog.com/2010/04/06/wayne-odesnik-denies-doping-cheating-fish-not-buying-it/
ReplyDelete