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Sharapova admits failing drug test at the Australian Open~Questions arise

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Maria Sharapova Tennis Goddess in a Bikini

Make no mistake…The 28 year old Russian Maria Sharapova is a stunner as you’ll can see but now she’s stunned all of us with admitting to failing the drug test at the Australian Open in January 2016

I’ve been a great fan of Tennis Superstar Maria Sharapova & willed her on to win everytime she steps on court …even let it be in 2014 when she did not know who Sachin Tendulkar was and later apologised for it !

But…

Her failing drug tests at the Australian Open raises serious Questions

Sharapova says she has been taking Mildronate,also known as Meldonium for 10 years after she was regularly falling ill. She had a magnesium deficiency and family history of diabetes.

She has apologised  & taken full responsibilty in a news conference in LA

Consequences have been immediately severe :

  1. She has been provisionally suspended to play Professional Tennis
  2. Big Sponsors like Nike,Porsche & Tag Heur have suspended association with her that will cost her Millions of Dollars Endorsement Fees

While I wish this 28 year old  is not forced to retire & does get to play World Grand Slam & ATP Tennis again (she can’t be suspended from wearing a bikini though!) my mind is perplexed with two questions :

Question 1

For the last 10 Years was Maria Sharapova taking Mildronate  also known as Meldonium ,and prescribed by her family doctor,from 2006 because of a health issue as she claims or  because it was a performance enhancing drug as identified as such by World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and banned from January 1,2016  ? ~ As a Tennis Superstar her Life is always under a microscope .Then why have we not heard of such a Health Issue that she yet must have for such a prolonged 10 years !?  

Question 2

How many such performance enhancing drugs are yet out there which have yet not been identified as such and therefore not yet banned & therefore consumed regularly by sportspeople for unfair advantage when competing ?  

Some Interesting Extracts from the Guardian on Meldonium & Extent of it’s use by Sportspeople: 

  •  Meldonium is used to treat ischaemia: a lack of blood flow to parts of the body, particularly in cases of angina or heart failure 
  • It is manufactured in Latvia and only distributed in Baltic countries and Russia. It is not approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use in the United States and is not authorised in the rest of Europe 
  • It increases blood flow, which improves exercise capacity in athletes
  • WADA found “evidence of its use by athletes with the intention of enhancing performance” by virtue of carrying more oxygen to muscle tissue 
  • The decision to add meldonium to the banned list was approved on 16 September 2015, and it came into effect on 1 January 2016. Wada had spent the previous year monitoring the drug before adding it to the banned list
  •  The drug was name-checked in the latest investigative documentary on Russian doping reforms by the German Hajo Seppelt . The documentary referred to a 2015 study in which 17% of Russian athletes (724 of 4,316) tested were found to have meldonium in their system 
  • A global study found 2.2% of athletes had it in their system
  •  It is classed as an S4 substance under the WADA code, which addresses hormone and metabolic modulators
  •  The standard ban under the World Anti-Doping Code is four years
  •  A memo was sent out to athletes by Russia’s anti-doping agency last September informing them of the decision to ban its use
  •  Several athletes have been suspended since the turn of 2016 after testing positive for the drug.  A few of these are Abebe Aregawi, the 2013 women’s 1,500m world champion ~ Endeshaw Negesse, the 2015 Tokyo marathon champion ~ Olga Abramova and Artem Tyschcenko, two Ukrainian biathletes ~ Eduard Vorganov, a Russian cyclist ~Ekaterina Bobrova, a Russian ice dancer.
    • read more

    Fixing in Football ~ Horse Racing ~ Cricket ~ Cycling ~ Tennis ~ Olympics ~ Libor ~Stock Markets !?

    Leave a Comment / Chuckle !, Controversies, Corporate Governance, Cricket, Football, Insider Trading, Interesting News Sightings, INVESTOR MISTAKES, Reflections, Sports, STOCKS, Summer Olympics, Tennis, When the Heart Explodes through the helpless Mind / By

    Fixing in Football ~ Horse Racing ~ Cricket  ~ Cycling ~ Tennis ~ Olympics ~ Libor Rate

    What about Stock Market Fixing !? ~ Nah ! It’s a rhetoric question !

    Just Like when Footballers deliberately lose Matches ~Just Like when Horses are not allowed to run on Merit by the Jockeys ~ Just Like Spot Fixing in Cricket ~Just Like Steroids and Banned Drugs being taken by Competitors across Sports  for that  Unfair Advantage ~Just Like Tennis players throw matches for money~  Just like Olympic Athletes dope to outperform and win medals ~ Just Like influencing Libor Rate Setting to take leveraged profitable positions on consequent trends

    So it is in Stock Exchanges  for that Unfair Advantage ! ~ Insider Trading ~ Stocks being allowed to run beyond merit ~Selective Punishment ~ Circular Trading ~Biased IPO Gradings ~ High Frequency Trading making a mockery of Research & Fairplay

    ABBA Song says it all :

    “I wouldn’t have to work at all, I’d fool around and have a ball…

    Money, money, money
    Must be funny
    In the rich man’s world
    Money, money, money
    Always sunny
    In the rich man’s world “

    Till you’re caught ,that is !

    Serbian Novak Djokovic and Belarusian Victoria Azarenka come from a set down to retain their Australian Open Tennis Titles

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    Novak Djokovic of  Serbia just won the Australian Open Tennis Championship beating Andy Murray of UK in four sets 6-7,7-6,6-3,6-2~ losing the first in a tie break and then taking the next three ~his third consecutive Australian Open Title and four in all

    Yesterday Victoria Azarenka of Belarus  also came from a set down and  retained her  Australian Open Tennis Title and World Ranking 1 beating China’s Li Na 4-6,6-4,6-3

    What an Epic Olympic Tennis Semis between Winner Swiss Federer and Argentinian Del Potro !

    Leave a Comment / Inspiring and Motivating, Interesting News Sightings, Investing Themes, Reflections, Sports, Summer Olympics, Tennis / By
    The Longest Tennis Match,all of 4 hrs and 26 min, in Olympic History just sees Champion Roger Federer of Switzerland finally beat Champion Del Potro of Argentina in the Semis 3-6,7-6 and Phew ! 19-17 to enter the Finals in London !
    Match Stats of an epic Olympic Tennis Semis between Winner Federer and Del Potro
    Federer had to fall back on his Serve to bail him out ~  he even failed to convert many breakpoints I created my own records of sorts by posting for over an hour  the largest no of live fb comments on this thread while the deciding set  was being played out ! ~ Check the Thread out below Gaurav A Parikh
    Watch Live going on the awesome Tennis Semis at the Olympics between Federer and Podro ~ it’s 9 all in the deciding third set,one set a piece
    Like ·  · Unfollow Post · about an hour ago ·

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    • Yeah ! Roger Federer lifts a record Seventh Wimbledon Singles Crown !

    Leave a Comment / Inspiring and Motivating, Reflections, Sports, Tennis / By

    Roger Federer lifting a record Seventh Wimbledon Trophy in 2012

    Yeah ! ~Federer lifts a record seventh Wimbledon Title to equal Pete Sampras ~ beats a tiring and animated Andy Murray in fours sets 4-6,7-5,6-3,6-4 despite making a record 30+ unforced errors

    A Bonus ! ~ Federer regains his World No 1 Ranking too with his wife and really cute twin baby daughters cheering him on for this 17th Grand Slam Title too !

    Murray was the first Brit in 74 years to enter the Finals and could not make it a historic one though he said post match he’s “Getting Closer!” ~ The Great Fred Perry was the last Englishman to win the Wimbledon ~ in fact a hat-trick of wins in the mid 1930s ~ Murray’s emotions poured out after the match and he could not hold back his tears while thanking all for their great support and crediting Federer that even at 30 he had something in him and deserved to win !

    Roger Federer is simply in another league ! ~ wins despite over 30 unforced errors ~ Murray was clearly tiring  and getting animated too as the match progressed ~ he began brilliantly with all of Britain behind their Boy ~ Murray broke Federer in the very first game of the match and though Federer  got a break back,Murray broke him again to win the first set 6-4 ~ Federer won the next three sets to lift the Wimbledon Title 2012

    And would you believe it !~ Just to see their Countryman Murray play the Finals,the first Brit in 74 years to do so ,the Wimbledon Mens Finals Centre Court Ticket zoomed to Pounds 42000 ! That’s @ US $ 66000 or @ Rs 36 lakhs ! Phew ! ~ This is the figure that was repeatedly quoted on Live TV by Indian Tennis Ace of yesteryears,Vijay Amritraj who was one of the Commentators for live coverage of Wimbledon for a leading Sports TV Channel  ~ gave him a chance to also plug the Channel ! saying it’s better to sit relaxed at home and watch the Finals on TV rather than paying such a price ! ~ I quite agree really ! ~ probably because we are not Brits too ! ~ but I bet a lot of Brits too would agree !

    Roger Federer beats Defending Champion Novak Djokovic in 4 sets to enter a record 8th Wimbledon Final

    Leave a Comment / Inspiring and Motivating, Reflections, Sports, Tennis / By
    A Happy Roger Federer after beating Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon 2012 Semis
    An Elated Roger Federer just after he knocks out Defending Champion Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon 2012 Semis in a Superb Four Setter

    My favourite  and one I was cheering and rooting for all the way and Six Times Wimbledon Champion,Roger Federer just beat Top Seed and Defending Champion ,Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon Semis in a superb Centre Court four setter 6-3,3-6,6-4,6-3 to enter a record Eight Wimbledon Final

    What a Super Match ! ~ 2 Hours and 19 Minutes in all ~Federer’s Superb Serve came to his rescue at crucial times in the match and when he won the crucial third set it was him all the way in the Fourth

    On Sunday,he plays the winner of the other Semis that has just commenced  ~ Murray vs Tsonga ~ neither of these two have ever played in a Wimbledon Final before !  ~ Murray has a 5-1 Head to Head Match Record against Tonga with a 2-0 record on Grass ~  and this Brit is playing in his fourth Wimbledon Semis ~ if he enters the Finals the Price for Tickets for his match vs Federer on Sunday will simply zoom ~ Indian Tennis Ace of yesteryears and now a Tennis Commentator,Vijay Amritraj just quoted a possible ridiculous Price of Sterling Pounds 20000 ! right now on Live TV Coverage ! Hey ! that’s Rs 18 lakhs or Rs 1.8 million for one Centre Court Wimbledon 2012 Mens Finals Ticket !

    Interestingly Tsonga beat Federer at Wimbledon last year coming back from Two Sets down !

    Roger Federer last won Wimbledon in 2009 and it was a magical beauty ~ he cracked Andy Roddick 16-14 in the Fifth Set ! I blogged on it on July 5,2009 ~ it was a his sixth triumph at Wimbledon and this Sunday his effort will be to match Pete Sampras’s record of Seven Wimbledon Titles

    Just witnessed a Great Wimbledon Mens Final !…Great Champion,Roger Federer wins a Five setter and a record Fifteen Grand Slam Title

    Sunday, July 5th, 2009

     Novak ? No ! ~ Nadal? Nah ! ~ for me it’s Roger all the Way ! ~ Roger that !

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