Agassi drugs revelation: WADA asks ATP to explain alleged cover-up

LONDON - Pressure is growing on tennis officials to explain their non-action against former Grand Slam champion Andre Agassi following his shocking revelation of drug-taking, The Times reports.

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has asked the ATP to explain the Agassi case further.

Agassi told how, in 1997, he had deliberately snorted crystal meth, subsequently failed a drugs test but escaped a ban after falsely telling the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) that he had ingested the drug by accident.

The confession is made in Agassi’s autobiography, Open, which is being exclusively serialised by The Times.

The silence from the tennis authorities that has greeted the revelations has done little to allay fears that other top players may have avoided punishment after failing drug tests.

It is being said that the ATP accepted his version of events and he escaped any sanction.

The positive test was not revealed until Agassi’s dramatic confession yesterday.

John Fahey, the Wada president, said that no retrospective punishment could be taken against the eight-times grand-slam tournament champion because of the agency’s eight-year statute of limitations and because Agassi is retired.

“Wada would, however, expect the ATP, which administered its own anti-doping programme at that time, to shed light on this allegation,” Fahey said.

The publication of Agassi’s admission yesterday inspired headlines and incredulity across the sporting world.

Mark Miles, the ATP chief executive at the time of Agassi’s subversion 12 years ago, would not be drawn on the specifics of the case.

But it is clear he and others have long been frustrated that independent tribunals appointed to arbitrate in several cases have chosen to come down on the players’ side, giving rise to accusations of weak leadership.

Miles insisted he could not say anything about any specific case, he rejected a suggestion that the ATP did anything on his watch that was not by the book. he Times asked the present ATP regime yesterday how many cases there have been since 1997 of players who tested positive for a prohibited substance and who had been charged with a doping offence who were subsequently exonerated by an independent tribunal.

There was no response. (ANI)