Maria Sharapova sponsor suggests amnesty for genuine takers of meldonium
ASTANA. KAZINFORM - The chairman of Maria Sharapova's racket sponsor has called for an amnesty to be given to athletes who took meldonium for proven medical reasons.
Sharapova is the highest profile of more than 170 athletes to have tested positive for the drug since it was added to the banned list at the start of 2016.
In announcing her failed test, the Russian said she had taken the drug for a decade after being prescribed it by her doctor but was unaware it had become a banned substance. The World Anti-Doping Agency potentially opened the door to some athletes avoiding sanction when it changed its guidance on meldonium this week.
Wada admitted it is not yet clear how long meldonium stays in the body and that athletes with only a very small quantity of the drug in their system could be cleared of blame.
Given Sharapova did not deny taking a banned substance, the new guidelines appear unlikely to help her case, but the Head chairman, Johan Eliasch, believes Wada's admission shows a flawed process.
Eliasch has stood by Sharapova in the aftermath of her statement, when other sponsors were distancing themselves.
He has been an outspoken critic of Wada and, in a statement on Head's Instagram page, said: "In response to Wada's recent admission that there is 'currently a lack of clear scientific information on excretion times' regarding meldonium, and the absence of any clinical testing results in the public domain evidencing performance-enhancing effects from meldonium, it is now quite clear that Wada made the decision to ban meldonium based solely upon the alleged prevalence of use among eastern European and Russian athletes.
"This highlights a wholly flawed decision-making process by Wada whereby the ban on meldonium has no justification. Until clinical testing is undertaken to prove that meldonium has indeed performance-enhancing potential, Wada should provide amnesty to athletes who had been taking the drug at the direction of a doctor for a proven medical condition, if not all athletes."
Sharapova is currently serving a provisional suspension pending a hearing that will decide what, if any, sanction she should face. The International Tennis Federation confirmed on Thursday that in the wake of Wada's new guidance, the hearing will go ahead, although the date will not be made public.
Kazinform refers to The Guardian.com