A National Treasure on the Rise, Then Hit With a Doping Allegation

Weeks later, after receiving the results from the test of his “B sample” — the second part of the original sample, used to verify the accuracy of the first, or A sample — Mr. Bol says his innocence has now been proven. The antidoping agency, calling the result “atypical,” said it has not.

The episode has raised questions not only about Mr. Bol’s integrity, but also when and how officials should go public with accusations of drug use. Internationally, it has resurrected debate about the accuracy of EPO testing, which critics call alarmingly open to human error.

On Jan. 10, when antidoping officials came to Mr. Bol’s home in Melbourne to inform him of his suspension, he hoped that the allegations might never become public.

His lawyer, Paul Greene, begged the antidoping agency, Sports Integrity Australia, to keep the suspension under wraps until testing on his B sample had been completed. Mr. Bol, 30, had a squeaky-clean reputation and a high public profile, and he maintained his innocence, Mr. Greene said.

He was a finalist for Young Australian of the Year, a prestigious national prize that would be awarded later that month, and they feared that the suspicion of doping could harm his chances, he added.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/02/22/world/australia/peter-bol-doping-allegations-australia.html