‘MacLeod’s drug mistake was genuine’

Feb 26 2008 by Our Correspondent, South Wales Echo

SCOTLAND team doctor James Robson has absolutely no doubt Scott MacLeod made a genuine mistake in taking a prohibited drug without permission.

The Scottish forward has been reprimanded and warned about his future conduct after testing positive for Terbutaline, an asthma medication that is on the World Anti-Doping Code prohibited list, without permission.

MacLeod had permission to use another asthma medication, Salbutamol, and it seems he did not realise the doping authorities make a distinction between the two drugs.

A judicial committee has accepted Macleod’s explanation and decided not to impose a playing ban on the 28-year-old.

“Unfortunately Scott’s medical knowledge is a little bit limited and he was under the mistaken apprehension that both Bricanyl and Ventolin, just two of several types of inhaler used to treat asthma, were one and the same thing,” said Robson.

“There are generic names (so called chemical names) for substances used in medicine and there are branded names and this occasionally gives rise to mistakes being made. I think Scott has made a very genuine mistake and I’m glad that he’s decided to come out publicly and help us emphasise how this mistake was made.”

Robson is sure MacLeod has not gained any unfair advantage from the drug, adding: “There is a school of thought that in the future the use of these drugs for asthma relief may not even appear on such banned lists.

“We are talking about a drug that is life-saving for 10 to 25 per cent of the population, and there is a suggestion that it would be very hard to actually gain that much benefit from their use.”