Calls for the Australian Football League to "break away from the World Anti-Doping Agency and establish its own drug code" have reignited over the suspension of 34 current and former AFL side Essendon players, according to Rebecca Urban of THE AUSTRALIAN. Greens leader Richard Di Natale, a medical doctor and former elite-level footballer, hit out Wednesday at the current system for "disproportionately punishing the players," calling on the federal government to launch an independent inquiry in light of the long-running scandal. He said the fact that an outcome had taken three years "pointed to a substantial problem with the current anti-doping framework." He singled out the WADA code, "designed with Olympic athletes in mind, and whether it was appropriate for team sports such as AFL." Di Natale: "I think we've got a problem when the burden falls disproportionately on the players. The system is broken when the blame is laid with players and other individuals and organizations aren’t faced with the same sort of penalties." The government, however, appears "unlikely to accede to the demand for a fresh inquiry." A spokesperson for Australian Sports Minister Sussan Ley said Wednesday that "any changes resulting from the Essendon case needed to be considered in this broader context" (THE AUSTRALIAN, 1/14). In Melbourne, Rohan Connolly reported Essendon has been "very effective engineers of their own demise." As such, Essendon would have "anticipated the circling of vultures that would come with an adverse finding." That is happening already, "with opposition clubs questioning whether Essendon should be granted" the No. 1 pick in this year's draft should, "as now expected with 12 of their best players outed, they finish on the bottom of the ladder." There are "murmurs now" about the '16 draw as well, and the "anticipated bonus victory" that Richmond, Geelong, St. Kilda, Gold Coast and Carlton -- the five teams who play the Bombers twice this season -- are likely to be handed (THE AGE, 1/13).
COST OF DOPING: AD NEWS' Arvind Hickman wrote while there are "obvious sporting and health concerns about doping," the effects in the world of business and commerce are "potentially huge." Sponsorship, TV rights and employment issues "are just a few that are often dragged through mud once doping hits the headlines." U.K.-based World Sports Law Report Associate Editor Percy Wilman said the doping scandal "could have a greater impact on the club than the loss of rostered players and being competitive on the field." Wilman: "From a commercial perspective, it should be expected that sponsors will either activate reputation break clauses (which is a standard insert in these type of contracts) or will request further controls from club administrators to guarantee all doping regulations are observed hereon." Companies will "think twice about being associated with individuals or sports where there may be a doping culture" (AD NEWS, 1/13).
