Stan's Banned For A Year

[Bearinator]

Stan's Banned For A Year - 442

PERTH Glory marquee star and former Socceroo Stan Lazaridis has been suspended for a year after testing positive for a banned substance.
Football Federation Australia this evening confirmed the 12 month ban for Lazaridis, 35, but said it would be backdated to the date of his positive test.

That means the suspension will finish on November 27, ruling him out for more than a third of the new season.

However Lazaridis last played for the club on December 14 last year (pictured here hobbling from the field with an injury in that game), throwing his retrospective year-long ban into confusion.

Both FFA and Perth Glory spokesmen admitted they were unsure how that worked.

"We had no input into this process at all," said a Glory spokesman.

The midfield veteran was found to have tested positive for a hairloss drug that's on the list of banned substances as a possible masking agent for other drugs.

He is understood to have previously been granted permission overseas to use the drug for therapeutic purposes but that exemption had not been renewed when he was tested in Australia.

He currently has an appeal underway for a retrospective granting of permission to use the drug after an initial plea was rejected.

The FFA said it had known of the suspension since August 6 but admitted it had waited three weeks to announce it to allow for any further appeals.

"The case illustrated the critical importance of athletes complying strictly with the regulations and procedures governing anti-doping," said FFA CEO Ben Buckley.

“The tribunal made certain express findings regarding Stan’s good character which FFA welcomes.

"In particular it found that Stan had not taken the prohibited substance to mask a performance enhancing drug but for legitimate therapeutic purposes as prescribed by his doctor.

"The problem related to the processes which is why it is so important for all athletes to be vigilant."

He added: “Whatever happens with the appeal relating to the retroactive TUE, we are looking forward to Stan resuming his playing duties for Perth Glory in due course.

“He has an illustrious playing record and we look forward to him continuing to make a strong contribution to the Hyundai A-League.”

[omni]

All I can say is he deserves it for being a moron, just go bald and get over it.

[Andy]

If the suspension is backdated, shouldn't it start from his last appearance? Technically he isn't serving a 1 year sentence here, only 11 months.

[omni]

I agree it should go from December not November, but whatever Stan's an idiot for getting the suspension in the first place.

[forzamariners]

lol he should just retire now

[northernspirit]

i feel sorry for him, it was bloody stupid of him though!

[shift2]

I think it's funny that all this came about because of him using a hair loss drug.

Kind of like Warney taking pills because he was fat.

[Ursus]

Losing hair is definitely not a medical condition. It is a natural part of approaching maturity and is a clear sign of intelligence and wisdom.
Through the book at him.

[Jesus]

It is not just for hair loss. Also for skin irrattion of the scalp. He had the right to use it overseas. I agree with the PFA that there needs to be an international standard applied, to remove waiting times.

[serious14]

You're an idiot Omni. (well, I knew that already, but still)

What if you took a headache tablet or something just as innocent and got done after one of your running races?? Would you be calling yourself a moron or something just as similar?? This ban is complete and utter bullshit and puts an unnecessary smear on one of our most consistent players from the last 10 years - sometimes there's just no common sense when it comes to these drug rules.

[dibo (pron. "DIB-OH")]

he's a professional athlete. he plays a sport subject to the WADA/ASADA rules. he's had a very long career and has doubtless been drug tested hundreds of times. there is no excuse for ignorance or stupidity.

you cannot, for any reason, take a WADA/ASADA proscribed substance without prior approval. it really is as simple as that. nobody forced him to take it, nobody denied him the information to say that it was illegal, he did it himself and has to wear the consequences.

[serious14]

Thankyou Administr..... I mean, Dibo.

[marinermick]

dibo said:

he's a professional athlete. he plays a sport subject to the WADA/ASADA rules. he's had a very long career and has doubtless been drug tested hundreds of times. there is no excuse for ignorance or stupidity.

you cannot, for any reason, take a WADA/ASADA proscribed substance without prior approval. it really is as simple as that. nobody forced him to take it, nobody denied him the information to say that it was illegal, he did it himself and has to wear the consequences.

he actually knew the consequences and knew he was taking a banned substance

he was waiting for over a year for the governing body to make a ruling when he decided to go ahead and take the medication anyway

apparently he was in significant pain from his skin condition and just could not wait anymore

so yes, he knew what he was doing, and maybe it was stupid, but we cannot know what he was experiencing and how uncomfortable the condition was to make aaequate judgement

i, for one, don't consider him a drug cheat

it must be noted, however, that the particular drug he was taking is also used as a masking agent for other performance enhancing drugs

in stan's case i believe it was just for his skin condition

[serious14]

Seriously, if Stan the Man was ever exposed as an actual drug cheat, then all hope for integrity in sport would be lost - I'd be suss of everyone. Come on, this is _Stan the Man_ Lazaridis we're talking about here. Left wing extraordinaire!!!

[marinermick]

serious14 said:

Seriously, if Stan the Man was ever exposed as an actual drug cheat, then all hope for integrity in sport would be lost - I'd be suss of everyone. Come on, this is _Stan the Man_ Lazaridis we're talking about here. Left wing extraordinaire!!!

he does, however, have a massively unproportioned head and is a hunchback

[serious14]

True - but he was a damn good winger in his day. I didn't realise how much the Socceroo's would miss him and Chippers until they weren't there (Asia Cup). Wilkshire is okay and all, but those two used to be so strong down that left side.

Thankfully the Sterj has stepped up somewhat, although he's more of a roamer at the moment.

[marinermick]

serious14 said:

True - but he was a damn good winger in his day. I didn't realise how much the Socceroo's would miss him and Chippers until they weren't there (Asia Cup). Wilkshire is okay and all, but those two used to be so strong down that left side.

Thankfully the Sterj has stepped up somewhat, although he's more of a roamer at the moment.

time for the heff to step up in this role

[serious14]

For the NT??

Wouldn't say no to that at all. I also wouldn't see a reason for him to not be part of the "A-League team" that will inevitably play most of our World Cup qualifiers.

[Pete]

This is what I have read previously about this matter, whether all or any of it is the truth - who knows:

1) Lazaridis is alleged to be suffering from Alopecia, an autoimmune disorder that causes hair loss. Alopecia can be anything from bald spots on the scalp to total all-body hair loss. There can be discomfort and skin irritation associated with the condition. The drug's primary medical use is to ease such irritation.

2) Lazaridis was alleged to have previously been given dispensation to use the drug in question when playing overseas. When he came back to Australia he applied for dispensation again, but was compelled to use the drug prior to approval being granted. He had been waiting for over 6 weeks, I believe, for someone in the FFA to make a decision.

3) He was drug tested in between the time he applied for dispensation and the time the FFA got around to his matter, and he had been allegedly taken the drug to ease his skin condition on Dr.'s advice.

4) The drug was prescribed to him by a Dr. who would have known he was a professional athlete, and would have had a database listing the drug as a banned substance somewhere in their medical system.

5) Lazaridis knew the drug was a banned substance - he had applied overseas for approval to use it and had applied here to use it too. So if he did administer the drug to himself, and not had the FFA approval to hand, he would have known he was taking a huge risk.

Why didn't he just get the Perth Glory club and its' medical staff to push for the immediate approval under medical grounds? I'm sure the FFA would have jumped to attention if Perth made it clear to the FFA, that he really needed the drug for his own well being. I mean I'd hate to wait weeks for some clerk in the FFA to take the request to the medical staff and get approval, when your skin is itching madly!

[Andy]

petethebusdriver said:

This is what I have read previously about this matter, whether all or any of it is the truth - who knows:

1) Lazaridis is alleged to be suffering from Alopecia, an autoimmune disorder that causes hair loss. Alopecia can be anything from bald spots on the scalp to total all-body hair loss. There can be discomfort and skin irritation associated with the condition. The drug's primary medical use is to ease such irritation.

Thats what I thought. He was using it because he had been diagnosed with Alopecia.