Swim world rocked by steroid allegations

March 31, 2007

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) -- The swimming world was rocked by a report today that five-time Olympic gold medallist Ian Thorpe showed "abnormal levels" of two banned substances in a doping test six months before he retired. Australian swim officials said they only got word of the "adverse finding" after it was reported by the French sports daily L'Equipe. Thorpe was notified shortly afterward by the head coach of the national team, Alan Thompson.

"I can't tell you what they spoke about, only that Ian is obviously shocked," said Glenn Tasker, head of Swimming Australia.

The case quickly became front-page news in Australia, where Thorpe is one of the country's most recognizable athletes -- even in retirement.

Prime Minister John Howard quickly weighed in to support the ex-swimmer, an outspoken foe of performance-enhancing drugs during his career.

"I don't intend to react to, let alone endorse, unsubstantiated allegations in a French newspaper," Howard said.

FINA, without mentioning Thorpe by name, confirmed today that it had appealed an Australian doping case involving the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Agency to the Court of Arbitration for Sport "with the aim of clarifying issues surrounding this case."