Stressed out

Warne won't appeal against 12-month ban

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) -- Shane Warne won't appeal his drug ban and will be out of cricket for 12 months.

The champion legspinner told the Australian Cricket Board on Wednesday that he would not challenge the finding of its anti-doping tribunal after being found guilty of using a banned diuretic.

After the tribunal handed down its decision last Saturday, Warne said he was devastated and planning to appeal the severity of the 12-month suspension.

The announcement that he wouldn't appeal came hours after the ACB released the full findings of the tribunal, in which Warne's evidence was described as vague and unreliable.

The 33-year-old Australian said the past two weeks had been "the toughest of my life" and his decision not to appeal was taken because, "I no longer want to put my family under even more stress".

Warne maintained he had never used or needed performance-enhancing drugs, but admitted he made "a simple and innocent error of judgment" in taking the diuretic.

"I am also disappointed that the committee has said that my evidence was vague and unsatisfactory," Warne said. "Both my mother and I gave honest accounts under oath. The fact this has been brought into question is unfair."

Warne said the length of the suspension was harsh, but he was determined to make a comeback when it ends on Feb. 10 next year.

"Looking to the future, I can say that I am definitely going to give it my best shot to get back to the top and will continue to train hard, work on my bowling and experiment with new deliveries."

In publishing its findings, the ACB's anti-doping tribunal said it had "grave doubts that it has full information as to the extent that Warne used (diuretics) prior to providing the sample on January 22, 2003."

"Much of Warne's evidence on these issues was unsatisfactory and the committee does not accept he was entirely truthful in his responses to questions about his knowledge of the ACB anti-doping policy," the tribunal said.

Warne tested positive for banned diuretics in a random doping test in Sydney on Jan. 22, the eve of his international comeback from a dislocated shoulder.

He claimed he unwittingly took the diuretics contained in a weight-loss pill his mother had given him.

The charge carried a maximum two-year ban, although the tribunal imposed a lesser punishment after accepting evidence from the ACB's anti-doping control officer that the sample contained no traces of performance-enhancing substances and Warne couldn't have gained advantage from using drugs.

Diuretics are banned because they can be used as masking agents for other drugs, including anabolic steroids.

The tribunal also questioned the evidence given by Warne's mother Brigitte, who gave him the diet pills at least twice.

Warne told the tribunal he'd taken a diuretic tablet in December as well as in January, but while the earlier use showed up in a later drugs test, it was not enough to trigger a positive finding.

He told the tribunal he'd never read the ACB's playing conditions which included the anti-doping code, had not learnt the consequences of using diuretics or other drugs, and did not know medical experts were available to advise him on the use of any drugs.

The tribunal described Warne's decision to take the tablets without knowing what they contained as "a reckless act, totally disregarding the consequences."

"That sheet (of tablets) clearly named the drug Moduretic and specified the two constituent drugs," the committee ruled. "Warne said he could not read that because of the torn flaps from where the tablet had been used but clearly that would not be so.

"He clearly knew it was a chemical compound available only on prescription. He clearly intended the chemicals in the tablet to alter his body integrity at least cosmetically."

Warne is Australia's leading wicket taker in test and limited-overs cricket. His 491 test wickets ranks him second on the all time international standings behind retired West Indies paceman Courtney Walsh (519).

After maintaining publicly that he'd only taken the "fluid pill" once by accident, Warne admitted in a TV interview on Tuesday that he'd used a pill in December to improve his appearance after a spate of late nights and drinking sessions to promote his wine label.

He put the whole affair down to vanity, saying he was trying to hide a "double chin."

Warne had lost 12 kilograms in as many months in a bid to extend his test career, the extra conditioning helping after he dislocated his bowling shoulder on Dec. 15 and returned to cricket within five weeks to seal his spot in the World Cup squad.

He announced his positive test on Feb. 11, an hour before Australia opened its World Cup defense in Johannesburg, South Africa. Warne's ban will rule him out for test series against the West Indies, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, India and Sri Lanka.

 

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