Controversial sports scientist Stephen Dank has been handed a lifetime ban by an AFL anti-doping tribunal for his role in the Essendon supplements affair.
“The Australian Football League anti-doping tribunal has concluded its deliberation with respect to the sanction of the former Essendon Football Club support person found to have breached the AFL anti-doping code,” a statement read.
“The tribunal has imposed a lifetime sanction, commencing on 25 June 2015.”
Although the ban has been handed down by the AFL, Dank is automatically precluded from working again in any other sport that is a signatory to the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) code.
Dank, who chose not to be represented at the hearing and can contest the verdict at an AFL appeals board, vowed to vigorously fight the sanction.
“We will now accelerate our legal action against the AFL and individual members of its executive who are responsible for this decision being handed down,” Dank said when informed by the Herald Sun of the news.
“They have contaminated the truth and impaired natural justice, and now they will feel the full thrust of the law in relation to how they’ve handled this process.”
Dank in April was found guilty on 10 counts of breaching the AFL’s anti-doping code, including charges of trafficking and attempted trafficking of, and complicity in, matters related to prohibited substances.
He was cleared of the more serious charges of the administration or attempted administration of Thymosin Beta 4 to 34 current and former Bombers players.
Those players were cleared of any wrongdoing by the tribunal in March but earlier this month Wada announced it would appeal against the not-guilty verdicts.
Wada is currently building its case, which it will take to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, and the two-year saga is showing no sign of reaching an imminent conclusion.
The AFL was expected to make comment on the latest findings later on Friday afternoon.
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