All Blacks’ Oliver fails drug test

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Posted: Thursday September 30, 1999 04:17 PM

Oliver said he was “shocked and appalled” when he discovered he returned a positive test. David Rogers/Allsport

CARDIFF, Wales (AP) -- All Blacks hooker Anton Oliver became the first player to fail a doping test at a rugby World Cup but was let off with a reprimand Thursday by organizers after claiming the substance was contained in medication he was taking for an ear infection.

Oliver, New Zealand's No. 1 hooker, returned a positive sample to the banned substance pseudo-ephedrine during a routine pretournament doping test.

Rugby World Cup organizers said 300 players, representing 50 percent of the players in the 20 national squads, had been tested and Oliver's was the only positive test to date.

World Cup organizers said that a judicial committee ruled that a sufficient penalty, given the circumstances, was a “severe reprimand.”

“[the panel] sat this morning and gave careful consideration to the player's explanation ... and accepted the player's explanation since it was supported by the team doctor on the New Zealand Rugby Union,” the RWC organizers said in a statement.

Dr. John Mayhew admitted to having prescribed Oliver a remedy for an inner ear infection which the player administered in a dosage exceeding that prescribed by the doctor, resulting in a level greater than the 10 micrograms per milliliter allowed, the statement said.

Oliver said he was “shocked and appalled” when he discovered he returned a positive test.

“It's a real lesson to players that you have to be extremely careful about taking any medication exactly as prescribed,” the 24-year-old Otago rake said in a statement released by the NZRFU.

“I know it's a serious issue and I regret what's happened. However, I hope that people will realize it was a small mistake, made unwittingly.”

Oliver, a veteran of 14 tests, will be allowed to take his place in the All Blacks opening world cup clash against Tonga at Bristol on Sunday.

All Blacks manager Mike Banks said Oliver started taking the medication two days before the squad departed for England last week, adding that pseudoephedrine was commonly prescribed for head colds and blocked ears and was “not a banned substance, nor is it performance-enhancing.”

“On Anton's first night in the UK, [last] Friday night, he awoke in distress from blocked sinuses and ears, and took an extra tablet to make up for a missed dose and tried to get some relief,” Banks said

“A few hours later he was drug-tested after declaring his medication. At the time he was still dehydrated from the flight from New Zealand and he therefore produced a very concentrated sample.

“The All Blacks management submitted a formal report, including a full explanation last night, and later this morning were advised by the Rugby World Cup 1999 Tournament Office that the explanation was accepted and that Anton Oliver would receive a reprimand. However, no further action was to be taken.”

“The All Blacks management fully supported the Rugby World Cup drug-testing program and its aims to prevent the use of performance-enhancing drugs. This is patently not such a case.”

The New Zealand All Blacks were planning a press conference in Bristol later Thursday.

 

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