Manning named in drugs doco
A television documentary which screened overnight in the United States has linked American football star Peyton Manning to performanceenhancing drugs.
The Huffington Post and other major American media websites are abuzz with the story which links an Indianapolis anti-ageing clinic to the supply of human growth hormone, which is banned by the NFL, to Manning and his wife.
The special report from Al Jazeera’s investigative unit titled The Dark Side was the result of a months long investigation in which Liam Collins, a British hurdler, went undercover in an attempt to expose the widespread nature of performanceenhancing drugs in global sports.
The Huffington Post reported that as a cover story, Collins tells medical professionals tied to the trade of performance-enhancing drugs that he is hoping for one last shot at glory at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Manning is just one of many highprofile players the report names and raises questions about.
The Post reports that as part of the Al Jazeera investigation, Collins connected with Charlie Sly, a pharmacist based in Austin, Texas, who worked at the Guyer Institute, an Indianabased anti-ageing clinic, in 2011.
Manning missed the 2011 season, when he was a member of the Indianapolis Colts, after undergoing neck surgery.
In the documentary, Sly tells Collins, who is taking secret video of his interactions, that he was “part of a medical team that helped [Manning] recover” from the surgery.
Sly alleges that the clinic mailed growth hormone and other drugs to Manning’s wife, Ashley Manning, so that the quarterback’s name was never attached to them.
Manning’s agent denied the details of the report to Al Jazeera, calling Sly’s assertions “outrageous and wrong”. Manning “has never done what this person is suggesting”, his agent told Al Jazeera.