Former Olympic champion Taufik Hidayat warned other badminton players to take extra care over their diet and supplements after a positive drugs test rocked world number one Lee Chong Wei.
The retired Indonesian said Malaysia’s Lee probably took the banned anti-inflammatory dexamethasone by mistake, but that he should still have been aware of what was going into his body.
“I just can’t believe it until now. I’m not sure that he did it in purpose. Maybe there was a mistake when he was still receiving medication for his injury,” Taufik said, according to the Jakarta Globe.
“A world-class player like Chong Wei should have known what he consumed, what went into his body. And BAM (Badminton Association of Malaysia) is a professional body that carefully looks after its players.”
Lee, 32, is temporarily barred from competition after testing positive during the world championships. He could face an eventual suspension of up to two years.
“Athletes must be aware of many things, not only their daily training. They should know what they eat, what they drink,” said Hidayat, who quit the sport last year.
“They should know everything going into their bodies. Because athletes have only two real enemies: themselves and doping.
“Once athletes take doping, there goes their name and achievements. Their years of hard work will vanish. Just look at what happened to Lance Armstrong.”
He added: “This case is a disgrace to world badminton. It’s just too bad if it’s true.”