The Leinster captain had commented on an article by Sunday Independent journalist Paul Kimmage on rugby’s needs to address the issue of performance enhancing drugs and supplement use
Jamie Heaslip has been active on Twitter this week and commented on the journalist stoking controversy and leaving open-ended questions in his latest Sunday newspaper column that dealt with PEDs in the game.
Kimmage was interviewed on The Last Word on Wednesday and said rugby was ‘on a dodgy path’ by introducing supplements to players as young as 16. He declared, ‘I’m asking the sport, I’m asking the people who love the sport to debate what is obvious to anyone who looks at it now, they need to have to have this debate. But so far all we have is silence.’
Speaking at Leinster’s press briefing this afternoon, Heaslip said that the testing process in place, contrary to the journalist’s opinion, is working. Heaslip remarked, ‘I just commented on how he likes to leave things very open. That’s all.’ Kimmage was not in attendance at today’s press briefing.
‘I think the processes that are in place work,’ Heaslip added. Asked about the number of times he has been subjected to tests, Heaslip responded, ‘I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve been tested. Blood, urine; they do it all. Plenty of times; they call to the house, they call here.’
Heaslip addressed the media this afternoon alongside Leinster head coach Matt O’Connor. The head coach would later address the drugs-testing issue with Newstalk and the print media but his immediate focus was on this Sunday’s match against Harlequins.
O’Connor confirmed frontline stars such as Rob Kearney, Ian Madigan, Heaslip and Rhys Ruddock should all feature in Sunday’s match at The Stoop.
The news on injury-prone Fergus McFadden was not so good as damage taken to his thumb has seen him ruled out of action for at least another four weeks. Luke Fitzgerald, however, is fit and ready for action, according to O’Connor.
Hat-tip to Word in Sport
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