Willie Rioli is hopeful of securing a significant reduction on a four-year ban for a pair of ASADA breaches
Willie Rioli is hopeful of securing a significant reduction on a four-year ban for a pair of ASADA breaches. However, nine months after being caught, he is no closer to knowing where his case is at.
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West Coast forward Willie Rioli is hopeful of securing a significant reduction on a four-year ban for a pair of ASADA breaches that have seen him forced from football.
But while former ASADA boss Richard Ings says he could still likely secure a lesser penalty, a tampering charge is more serious than the cannabis use he may have tried to hide.
Rioli remains in the Tiwi Islands with his partner nine months on from the August 20 provisional suspension for urine substitution.
But the lengthy delay has handed him a significant silver lining as he continues to train with friends from official competitions.
While he is awaiting a decision from the AFL’s anti-doping tribunal he is able to be paid and train with friends who play for the Tiwi Bombers in the NTFL.
As much as he is determined to secure a resolution on his case, as soon as he accepts a suspension he is banned from training with any player from an official competition.
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West Coast is still able to pay Rioli even if he is suspended, but those close to him worry about his welfare if he is suspended, unable to train with friends and away from the structure of his club.
Rioli has been officially interviewed and has explained the circumstances behind his adverse finding.
Only weeks later Rioli tested positive for a metabolite of cannabis in another ASADA test.
Ings told the Herald Sun he believed cannabis use detected in ASADA tests was not worthy of a penalty.
But he said the tampering charge was serious because in world sport there were many cases of tampering to cover up the use of performance-enhancing drugs.
“In the world of anti-doping a cannabis violation is a relatively minor matter compared to being found guilty of tampering. A guilty verdict for tampering regardless of the substance can be up to a four year ban from competition,” he said.
“I have long held the view that while cannabis use is a violation of the anti-doping code it should only carry a public warning and a sanction of weeks to a month or two at the most.”
In recent times AFL and VFL players have been able to accept reduced sentences including Sam Murray (18 months, cocaine), Sam Gilbert (two years, cocaine) and Brayden Crossley (12 months, cocaine).
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The Herald Sun revealed Rioli substituted an energy drink for a urine sample in his haste to get to training while with ASADA drug testers.
If a case is proved which finds he deliberately tampered with his sample he is liable to face a four-year mandatory ban.
His lawyer David Grace QC will attempt to downgrade a four-year ban and could argue mitigation given Rioli’s circumstances and attempt to prove he was not concealing a performance-enhancing substance.
