WADA

 by Lisa Albergo reporting for AFANA from Chicago

The Swiss Court For Arbitration in Sport (CAS) has dismissed the appeal filed by the 34 former and current Essendon players. The player were initially cleared by the AFL Anti-Doping Tribunal, but WADA's appeal to CAS overturned that verdict and the players then launched their appeal against the banishment. With the penalty backdated to account for procedural delays, the players were effectively ruled out of the entire 2016 season.

by Lisa Albergo reporting for AFANA from Chicago

The 34 former and present Essendon players have lodged an appeal in the Federal Court of Switzerland against the CAS verdict. The club's insurance will pay all legal fees. The appeal paperwork has to be translated into French or German as those are the only two languages in which the court, based in Lausanne, operates. Club chairman Lindsay Tanner said on 3AW radio, "The club is supporting that. We feel it's the right thing to do. It's obviously very important to the players to clear their name ... ".

It is unclear what time frame there would be on what would be a final appeal. However, the current players are resigned to missing the 2016 season. According to AFLPA CEO Paul Marsh,

by Lisa Albergo reporting for AFANA from Chicago

There are three types of coaches - those who quit, those who have been sacked and those who will be sacked, with very few exceptions to the rule. In the earliest days of Australian Football there were no senior coaches. Team captains gave instructions on the field and acted as de facto coaches at training sessions. The first official senior coach was Jack Worrall who was appointed Carlton coach in 1902. Of course being the first senior coach appointed, he was also the first who was fired. He went on to be reinstated after the bookkeeping kerfuffle which saw him axed was sorted out and he was absolved of blame (he was also club secretary at the time). And so it has been ever since. If a team

by Lisa Albergo reporting for AFANA from Chicago

The World Anti-Doping Authority (WADA) announced in early August the results of tests which were done at a cutting-edge lab in Cologne, Germany. While the results do not prove that the banned Thymosin Beta-4 (TB4) was given to the Essendon players, the samples were taken from the players between December 2011 and August 2012 and then frozen and stored. Of the 27 samples which were recently tested, two showed high levels of TB4. These two came from players who were on Essendon's list in 2012.

by Lisa Albergo reporting for AFANA from Chicago

Stephen Dank, recently handed an international life ban from the sports industry, announced that he will appeal that ban and reiterated his intentions of possible legal action against ASADA. He also announced legal action against the AFL, but he has yet to file any motions. Dank, through an attorney, submitted a statement to the AFL legal department indicating his appeal. The appeal has been set for a tentative date of August 17. However Dank has asked for an extension so he can better prepare even though there is still no word as to whether or not he will actually appear before the hearing.

by Lisa Albergo reporting for AFANA from Chicago

It may have been unofficial that Stephen Dank would never be able to find employment with another sports franchise or within the sporting industry due to his involvement in the Essendon supplements saga, but as of June 26 2015 it was official. Dank was cleared of 21 of the 31 charges laid against him by the AFL Anti-Doping Tribunal, but ten of the charges remained. The 21 dropped charges centered around what Dank may or may not have actually administered to the players, with the Tribunal indicating they were "not comfortably satisfied" that there was enough evidence for a guilty verdict. The remaining ten charges included "trafficking, attempting to traffic and complicity in matters related to a range of prohibited substances" and centered around the banned substances Hexarelin, Humanofort, CJC-1295, GHRP6 and SARSM. All are human growth peptides, some of which are used in the bodybuilding world. According to Dr Peter Larkins, who has long been associated with the AFL, CJC-1295 is extremely dangerous as it can cause high blood pressure, extreme stress on the liver and kidney, loss of fertility and can potentially cause the growth of cancer cells.

by Lisa Albergo reporting for AFANA from Chicago

On the morning of Tuesday May 12, the Australian Rules Football world woke up to the surprising - but not totally unexpected - news that the World Anti-Doping Authority (WADA) has decided to appeal the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority (ASADA) verdicts in the Essendon Bombers' supplements case. The world body will take the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which is based in Lausanne, Switzerland (with courts also located in Sydney and in New York). A statement released by WADA Director-General David Howman said "After a thorough examination of the evidence ... WADA has decided to lodge its independent right of appeal ... As with all pending cases, and adhering to the proper and normal respect for the integrity of the legal process, WADA will refrain from commenting further ... until a decision has been made by CAS."