Irish Olympics scandal: Failed test 'no innocent mistake'
The Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport has issued a statement following reports that Irish boxer Michael O’Reilly failed a doping test.
"Sport Ireland, as the anti-doping agency within Ireland, has initiated the appropriate formal process having detected an adverse analytical finding in respect of a member of Team Ireland at the Rio Olympic Games," the statement reads.
"Due process and natural justice must apply.
"Accordingly, it would not be appropriate to discuss any case that is the subject of the formal process."
Irish middle-weight boxer Michael O’Reilly’s failing of a doping test on the eve of the Rio Olympic Games was believed “not to be an innocent mistake”, writes .
Team Ireland’s preparations for the Games were last night in tatters as the 23-year-old Portlaoise native was suspended having tested positive for a banned substance.
O’Reilly was tested before leaving for Rio by the Sport Ireland Anti-Doping Agency and returned “an adverse analytical finding in an A-sample”.
A tweet from O’Reilly’s account last night insisted that he will compete at the Games: “Box on the 12th in the last 16 against the winner of Mexico or Iraq...”
Sources last night said they expected a conclusion on the matter within the “next 24-48 hours” as Irish Olympic bosses are keen to minimise the fallout from the controversy.
However, there was widespread shock and anger after the story was revealed exclusively by the Irish Examiner online yesterday afternoon, as the draw for the boxing was taking place in Rio.
“This is a huge embarrassment, devastating for the team of boxers which is a really tight group,” said one Team Ireland member last night.
But senior sources, speaking to the Irish Examiner said it was understood that the breach was not because of an inadvertent error. “It is not believed to be an innocent mistake. But he will have the right to appeal this, but this is a disastrous start to the Games,” the source added.
In the draw, O’Reilly was one of five boxers given a bye in the first round but his participation in the Games hangs in the balance.
“The athlete has been provisionally suspended from competition and can take part in no sports activity, including training, in accordance with the WADA Code,” an Olympic Council of Ireland statement said.
O’Reilly will now decide whether to accept a sanction for a doping violation, to request that a B-sample be tested, or to appeal the provisional suspension.
“The athlete’s identity will remain confidential unless the sanction is accepted or the B-sample is tested and also returns an adverse analytical finding,” the OCI said despite his name emerging.
Several coaches and members of the boxing team were unaware of the news when it broke on the
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Boxer Paddy Barnes took to Twitter where he called for this newspaper to reveal the name of the boxer involved, which happened an hour later.
Who is it? You know so let us boxers know https://t.co/CTkUqTvHQd
— Paddy Barnes OLY (@paddyb_ireland) August 4, 2016
Team Ireland has eight boxers competing in the Olympics and boxing has been the most successful event for the Irish in recent games.
Sport Ireland said it is precluded from making any comment on any anti-doping matters because of the quasi-judicial nature of how the system is managed.
It has never commented on any matters of this nature and would not be doing so in this instance, a spokesman told the Irish Examiner.
The Irish Athletic Boxing Association confirmed the positive test sample.
“The IABA has always maintained a zero tolerance approach to doping and Irish boxing has been one of the most widely tested sports by the National Anti-Doping Programme over the last number of years,” it said in a statement.
A spokesman for Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport Shane Ross said he had no comment on the controversy.
Ironically, as the controversy broke, both Mr Ross and Junior Minister Patrick O’Donovan added their support for the global fight against doping in sport.
They said: “We look forward to supporting not just the athletes representing Ireland, but all of the clean athletes and competitors in Rio. We sincerely hope they will be performing in a doping-free environment.”
O’Reilly came to prominence last summer when, at the inaugural European Games in Baku, he won the gold medal.
The shock news that he had failed a dope test will be of some embarrassment to his coach, Pat Ryan, who is the current president of the Irish Amateur Boxing Association.
A statement from the IABA said: “The Irish Athletic Boxing Association (IABA) has been notified by Sport Ireland today of an alleged violation of the Irish Anti-doping Rules committed by one of the boxers in our High Performance Unit.
"In following the strict procedures applying to an adverse analytical finding, the athlete in question has been informed and is provisionally suspended. The boxer can request to have a “B” sample tested but cannot participate in any competition or activity prior to the completion of an investigation under Article 8 of the Irish Anti-doping Rules.
"The Irish Athletic Boxing Association has always maintained a zero tolerance approach to doping and Irish Boxing has been one of the most widely tested sports by the National Anti-Doping Programme over the last number of years.
"IABA’s policy is that doping is contrary to the spirit of sport and every member of the association has a duty to ensure that the sport is free of doping. We ensure our boxers are available for testing in and out of competition.
"The Irish Athletic Boxing Association will not be in a position to comment further until all elements of due process associated with the anti-doping programme are completed in this case.”
Ireland’s boxing team has been thrown into crisis as O’Reilly’s positive test emerges on eve of 2016 Games in Rio. He has been suspended pending an appeal.
Martin Fagan, a marathon runner, was banned for two years in 2012 after he failed doping test.
Battles against depression, injury and money troubles combined and led him to take the performance enhancer EPO.
Cian O'Connor burst into the national conscience as the only Irish medalist at the 2004 Summer Olympics. However, it later emerged that his horse Waterford Crystal tested positive for a prohibited substance. On foot of the sample, O’Connor was stripped of his medal by the Federation Equestre Internationale (FEI) and was banned for three months. However, FEI found that he did not deliberately attempt to affect the performance of the horse.
At the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, showjumper Denis Lynch withdrew from the showjumping final just hours before it began after his horse Lantinus tested positive for the banned substance capsaicin. Lynch claimed the substance was present in a cream he had put on the horse called Equiblock, which is similar to 'deep heat' used on humans. In October 2008 an FEI tribunal suspended Lynch for three months.
Two years after winning three gold medals and a bronze in 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, Michelle Smith’s career lay in ruins. She always denied taking performance-enhancing drugs, Smith was later found guilty of interfering with the sample.
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