Stars need to respect this process

NO athlete enjoys drugs tests, not least because it normally involves providing a urine sample in front of a stranger. But it can be more difficult when a sample is requested immediately after competition and dehydration makes it all the more uncomfortable to pee into a cup. It can sometimes take hours, the athlete painfully aware of the fact that their team are also being delayed as a result. Neil Jenkins endured such embarrassment after kicking the British and Irish Lions to glory in South Africa in 1997. It can also ruin the celebrations that follow an event. Cristiano Ronaldo missed out on enjoying his Champions League semi-final hat-trick against Atletico Madrid in May because he was selected by doping control officers at the game. It is said he complained he was too often chosen. Mesut Ozil reportedly snapped at the club doctor last season when asked to go with a doping officer after Arsenal’s defeat at Spurs in April. Phil Jones appears to have taken exception to being asked as he wanted to feature in a team photograph being taken in support of the Manchester bombing victims. Understandably, emotions were running high. But athletes need to remember why doping officers are there and why it remains so important for athletes to comply with the request to give a sample. Without integrity, elite sport is nothing, and this behaviour among footballers in particular is something the governing bodies need to address.