Olympics: US swimmer Hardy plans doping appeal

Friday 25 July 2008

LOS ANGELES - US swimmer Jessica Hardy will appeal her positive test for the banned substance clenbuterol but her status for the Beijing Olympics remains uncertain, the Orange County Register reported Friday.

Howard Jacobs, Hardy's lawyer, told the newspaper that she will appeal the result to a US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) arbitration panel and he is confident of a ruling fast enough for her to compete at the Olympics if she is cleared.

"She's still hoping to compete in Beijing," Jacobs said. "She's doing as well as can be expected. This is extremely stressful."

Hardy was told Monday that she failed a urine test after placing fourth in the 100-meter freestyle final but she had passed doping tests after winning the 100m breastsroke final July 1 and placing second in the 50m freestyle final July 6, the newspaper reported.

NBC television's Olympic website reported that both "A" and "B" samples from Hardy tested positive.

Dave Salo, who coaches Hardy at the Trojan Swim Club, told the newspaper that he thinks Hardy's positive test for the stimulant at the US Olympic swim trials ending July 6 was an "inadvertent consumption of a banned substance".

Hardy is among several US Olympians listed as endorsers of nutritional supplements and sports performance products from a company some of whose products have been banned by US college sport officials and linked to doping positives, the Register reported.

Salo, who guides Jensen as well as Hardy, said Hardy has passed numerous drug tests over the past three years in and out of competitions, including 14 administered by USADA from 2005 through 2007.

Hardy, 21, was to have departed with the US team Friday, set to make her Olympic debut in the 100m breaststroke, 50m freestyle and relays. But she left the US training camp after learning about her positive test Monday.

Clenbuterol, often used on racing horses, helps boost aerobic capacity and aids the body's flow of oxygen as well as stimulating the central nervous system. It is prescribed for people with asthma in some cases.

Athletes can apply for medical-use exemptions for such drugs but Jacobs told the Register he was not certain whether or not Hardy had filed such a waiver.

"It's premature to speculate (on a cause). We're investigating everything," Jacobs said.