Shayna Jack speaks out after five-hour ASADA doping hearing
Jack arrives for a briefing with ASADA officials in Brisbane on Friday. Photo: AAP
An emotional Shayna Jack cut short a media conference Friday after a lengthy hearing with anti-doping officials in a bid to clear her name.
Embattled swimming star Jack emerged from the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority hearing to say only that the investigation into how a banned anabolic agent was found in her system in a random drug test was ongoing.
The 20-year-old earlier fought back tears as she arrived at the ASADA Brisbane headquarters at about 12pm, flanked by her mother and lawyer. She did not emerge again until nearly 4.45pm.
Jack’s appearance was her chance to explain her case after testing positive for Ligandrol, a banned muscle growth agent, at a swim camp ahead of the world championships in South Korea.
“Swimming Australia has been nothing but supportive towards me and we have been a unit through the whole process,” she told a large media contingent after the hearing.
“Every decision we have made has been together, and we are very happy with every decision we have made.”
Jack’s lawyer interrupted journalists’ questions to say that “we will leave no stone unturned” in relation to the drug breach.
“The next step in the process as we expect correspondence from ASADA in about four-six weeks, but beyond that we cannot make any further comment,” he said.
“It is a standard process undertaken by ASADA, in an investigation determining the next step in the process.”
He said a detailed statement on Instagram remained current.
Jack missed the world championships – a move said at first to be for personal reasons, but later revealed to be because of the positive test.
She faces a four-year ban from competition – the standard penalty for a doping violation involving anabolic agents such as Ligandrol.
Jack was to argue on Friday that she did not knowingly take the drug. If she can prove her argument to the ASADA, the length of ban might be reduced.
She has already been banned from the rich International Swimming League as she prepares to fight her case.
It is the first time she has appeared in public since the doping scandal broke. She was expected to produce a diary as evidence as to what supplements she had taken.
BREAKING: Suspended swimmer @ShaynaJack has just arrived at her ASADA hearing in Brisbane. https://t.co/a5is0qbtUC #7NEWS pic.twitter.com/bDNOmntZOv
— 7NEWS Melbourne (@7NewsMelbourne) August 2, 2019
On Wednesday, Jack’s manager, Philip Stoneman, said the swimmer won’t contest the presence of the banned Ligandrol in her system.
“I don’t think this is a question of Shayna denying there is something in her body,” Stoneman said.
“What she is doing is fighting her innocence because it shouldn’t be in there and she doesn’t know how it got in there.”
-with AAP
