A British doctor has been "secretly filmed describing how he prescribed banned performance-enhancing drugs to 150 elite sportsmen, including Premier League footballers," according to the LONDON TIMES. An investigation by The Sunday Times found that Dr. Mark Bonar "charges sports stars thousands of pounds" for illicit drug programs. Culture Secretary John Whittingdale "ordered an inquiry into the taxpayer-funded UK Anti-Doping watchdog." Bonar, 38, who is based at a private London clinic, "made a series of extraordinary disclosures in meetings with undercover reporters which lay bare for the first time the depth of the drugs cheating culture within British sport." He claimed:
- His network of secret "clients" included an England cricketer, British Tour de France cyclists, a British boxing champion, tennis players and martial arts competitors as well as football players.
- Bonar claims he has "treated Arsenal, Chelsea, Leicester City and Birmingham City players." Despite Bonar's claims, there is "no independent evidence Bonar treated the players."
- In the past six years he has "treated more than 150 sports people" from the U.K. and abroad variously with banned substances such as erythropoietin (EPO), steroids and human growth hormone, and the sports performance improvements were "phenomenal."
- He was introduced to several sportsmen by a former Chelsea fitness coach who himself said that "he had suggested to a Premier League player that he should contact the doctor about steroid treatment."
His admissions also "raise serious questions about the competence" of UKAD, which has been chosen to investigate the recent doping allegations in Russian sport and will "oversee the worldwide effort to stamp out the use of banned drugs ahead of the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro this summer." UKAD, which receives £6M ($8.5M) of taxpayers’ money to police British sport, was given documentary evidence of the doctor’s doping activities two years ago, but "dismissed the allegations after a perfunctory investigation." Whittingdale said that he was "shocked and deeply concerned" by the revelations about Bonar and demanded to know why UKAD "did not act sooner." After viewing the undercover footage of the meetings with Bonar, Toni Minichiello, coach to Olympic Gold Medalist Jessica Ennis-Hill, said, "This case shows that British sport has a bigger doping problem than any of us imagined" (
LONDON TIMES, 4/3).
PRESSURE MOUNTS: In London, Walker & Riach reported pressure "has continued to mount" on UKAD CEO Nicole Sapstead. Former North Yorkshire Police Chief Constable and UKAD Board Chair David Kenworthy said that the board viewed the Sunday Times allegations "as being of concern and meriting closer examination." He added that the independent reviewer would "look into how the information provided by the unnamed athlete in 2014 was dealt with, and if proper procedures were followed." Bonar describes himself as "concierge doctor and managing director" of the Ultra-Wellenss Clinic. He said that his work "did not breach General Medical Council rules and that it was athletes' responsibility to ensure they did not take banned drugs." The GMC said that it would look into Bonar's alleged actions "as a matter of urgency" (GUARDIAN, 4/3).
COLUMN: JAIL THE CHEATS: Also in London, Colin Moynihan opined cheating is "inimical to the essence of sport." That is why, "saddened by the failure of international sports bodies, many countries ranging from New Zealand, Austria, Italy, France and Sweden to Mexico and China have either criminalised the use of performance-enhancing drugs in sport or enacted legislation that criminalises the trafficking of these drugs." Germany is the most recent to introduce legislation proclaiming "a declaration of war on cheaters." Under its laws, "athletes found guilty of doping face fines or prison terms of up to three years." Yet "we in the U.K. have delayed and failed to introduce long overdue sport-specific legislation." Anti-doping agencies have to be "strictly independent, well-governed, transparent and wholly professional." Minichiello "is right to question" whether Sapstead can continue. Her position "now appears to be untenable" (LONDON TIMES, 4/3).
UKAD FACES QUESTIONS: In London, Martha Kelner reported GMC CEO Niall Dickson said, "I would like to thank The Sunday Times for bringing these issues to our attention. These are serious allegations and we will follow them up as a matter of urgency." The GMC, which is the official register for doctors in the U.K., "has clear rules stating that doctors should not prescribe drugs to enhance sporting performance" but it said in a statement that UKAD "never passed on any information about any investigations" (DAILY MAIL, 4/3). REUTERS' Jack Stubbs reported Russian Athletics Federation Head Dmitry Shlyakhtin said that media reports about doping in British sport "will not harm Russia." UKAD said that it was "deeply concerned and shocked" by reports a British doctor alleged he had "prescribed banned performance-enhancing drugs to 150 sports figures including several Premier League footballers" (REUTERS, 4/3).
