[AnnaK_4ever]

Sorry if it's already been posted.

Christophe Rochus fires parting shot on doping

Reported on October 31, 2010

In an interview with Belgian newspaper La Derniere Heure, the retiring Christophe Rochus has said he believes doping takes place in tennis and that he "would not be against" the legalization of performance-enhancing drugs.

"There's a lot of cheating. Simply, people don't like to talk about it," he said. "I simply would like to stop the pretending. This hypocrisy is exasperating."

Rochus, who said he received a warning letter from the ATP after speaking out on the issue in the past, estimated he received 10-15 tests a year for ten years under the anti-doping program but believed some players managed to evade the system.

"I've seen things like everyone else. For me, it's inconceivable to play for five hours in the sun and come back like a rabbit the next day," he said. "I remember a match against a guy whose name I will not say. I won the first set 6-1, very easily. He went to the bathroom and came back metamorphosized. He led 5-3 in the second set and when I came back to 5-5... his nose began bleeding. I told myself it was all very strange."

Asked whether he was open to allowing the use of performance-enhancing drugs, Rochus said, "I would not be against it. Anyway, it exists.

"People who take these There's type of products know very well they take risks with their health. But they take it knowing because it could let them make a living for their entire family.

"There's the case of Canas, for example. I can cite his name because he has been caught twice, so one can assume he was doping. [Editor's note: Canas has received one anti-doping suspension under the ani-doping program. Mariano Puerta is the only tennis player to have received two suspensions.] In the end, he sacrified to make a living for for multiple generations of his family. His cause was almost noble."

Rochus also addressed past speculation that some sort of doping suspension was behind Justine Henin's sudden retirement in May 2008, from which she returned approximately 18 months. A standard doping suspension is two years.

"I heard [the rumours] like you," he said. All I can say is, I found it surprising, her sudden stop without apparent reason. Usually, champions like this announce several months in advance and do a sort of farewell tour."

Over the course of a three-part interview, Rochus also reflected on his career and companred the men's and women's game, saying depth and difficulty are far higher on the men's tour.

http://www.tennis.com/articles/templ...=8532&zoneid=6

[Action Jackson]

Doping and fixing, like the ATP give a shit.

[philosophicalarf]

Should be easy enough to figure out who Rochus is talking about, narrowed it down to only 6 possibles....


ps anyone else amused by Rochus getting moralistic about cheating? :-)

[cutesteve22]

I believed what Rochus said

[Shirogane]

thanks for the link.

[Fujee]

I don't understand why they don't just permanently ban players who are shown to be guilty after a hearing. If players are doing this to support familys and lifestyles, taking away the opportunity to do this would greatly change the circumstances.

[luie]

Originally Posted by philosophicalarf

Should be easy enough to figure out who Rochus is talking about, narrowed it down to only 6 possibles....


ps anyone else amused by Rochus getting moralistic about cheating? :-)

I narrowed it down to 1.

[FormerRafaFan]

"Over the course of a three-part interview, Rochus also reflected on his career and companred the men's and women's game, saying depth and difficulty are far higher on the men's tour."

Really?!?! Wow, I had no idea.. this is totally new to me! LMAO.

[Fujee]

There should be an ATP world tour Coke party

[Fee]

I know people like to speculate that there was a 'physical' reason for Justine's sudden retirement, but I honestly think she was suffering from severe depression and that's why she retired. She mentioned burnout and lack of motivation, but I have to wonder if she was dealing with a mental health issue and knew she needed to get off the tour and stop traveling to fix it.

[philosophicalarf]

Originally Posted by luie

I narrowed it down to 1.

If you're thinking Gasquet cos of the nosebleed, it's not :-) Wasn't 5-3 up in the 2nd.

[tennisfan856]

I would say doping and fixing are quite frequent in the rankings where christophe rochus was.

Like they say, you make the big bucks if you consistently stay within the top 100. Outside of it, you are scrapping like a dog.

I wish you guys gave your selections, I only went by this year's matchups for him, Marsel Illhan and Donald Young. Donald is too stupid to dope properly and I have little knowledge of Illhan.

[tennis2tennis]

Christophe Rochus fires parting shot on doping

In an interview with Belgian newspaper La Derniere Heure, the retiring Christophe Rochus has said he believes doping takes place in tennis and that he "would not be against" the legalization of performance-enhancing drugs.

"There's a lot of cheating. Simply, people don't like to talk about it," he said. "I simply would like to stop the pretending. This hypocrisy is exasperating."

Rochus, who said he received a warning letter from the ATP after speaking out on the issue in the past, estimated he received 10-15 tests a year for ten years under the anti-doping program but believed some players managed to evade the system.

"I've seen things like everyone else. For me, it's inconceivable to play for five hours in the sun and come back like a rabbit the next day," he said. "I remember a match against a guy whose name I will not say. I won the first set 6-1, very easily. He went to the bathroom and came back metamorphosized. He led 5-3 in the second set and when I came back to 5-5... his nose began bleeding. I told myself it was all very strange."

Asked whether he was open to allowing the use of performance-enhancing drugs, Rochus said, "I would not be against it. Anyway, it exists.

"People who take these type of products know very well they take risks with their health. But they take it knowing because it could let them make a living for their entire family.

"There's the case of Canas, for example. I can cite his name because he has been caught twice, so one can assume he was doping. [Editor's note: Canas has received one anti-doping suspension under the ani-doping program. Mariano Puerta is the only tennis player to have received two suspensions.] In the end, he sacrified to make a living for for multiple generations of his family. His cause was almost noble."

Rochus also addressed past speculation that some sort of doping suspension was behind Justine Henin's sudden retirement in May 2008, from which she returned approximately 18 months. A standard doping suspension is two years.

"I heard [the rumours] like you," he said. All I can say is, I found it surprising, her sudden stop without apparent reason. Usually, champions like this announce several months in advance and do a sort of farewell tour."

Over the course of a three-part interview, Rochus also reflected on his career and compared the men's and women's game, saying depth and difficulty are far higher on the men's tour.

[name_change]

What an idiot. This is all purely speculative and him mentioning names shows how classless he is. Justine was demotivated and burnt out. It was apparent in her results. And she reached #1 because she was skilled. No amount of performance enhancing drugs can make you hit such amazing backhands or be terrific at the net. That's talent.

And as for Canas being "almost noble", seriously? I'll go rob a bank and give the money to my family. It will give them financial security. Does that make me "almost noble" as well? For players who lost to Canas, what about them? They were not assisted by a banned substance and lost out on $$$ because of Canas. That's not almost noble, that's disgusting. I say this and I'm actually a fan of Canas' game.

I think it's unfair to point fingers when there's absolutely no proof.

[FiBeR]

gee.. you think this guy woke up one day and said "ill make the headlines before my 15min are finally over and i get forgotten"? or just thought "why not retire and slam the door on my way out?"

not classy but looks like it was burning him so better out than in, though this is just cheap unless you want to make a real change and not just let the crap come out and stink out there