Bray back in swim after judge rules drug tests faulty

By TERRY MADDAFORD

Swimmer Trent Bray's Olympic campaign is back in the water, a judge yesterday granting his appeal against a drug test.

Lawyers for Bray successfully challenged the New Zealand Sports Drug Agency's testing method, which returned a positive result for the anabolic steroid nandrolene.

Yesterday's decision clears the way for the Auckland freestyler to compete at the national championships at the end of the month.

Three hours after releasing his 51-page judgment, Judge Roderick Joyce, QC, also lifted a name suppression order required by the law governing sports drug tests and imposed at the start of the Auckland District Court hearing.

Bray's lawyer, Peter Thorp, said the swimmer was delighted with the decision.

"Trent had protested his innocence from the start," said Mr Thorp.

"Our case was to see whether they had complied with the correct procedures in taking and testing the sample."

Judge Joyce said his decision was based on two fundamental weaknesses in the test: the containers used in one part of the process, and the time taken to test the sample after it had been taken.

Mr Thorp said it appeared the courier company that forwarded the samples did not send paperwork in time and the sample sat in quarantine in Sydney for two weeks.

Drug agency chief executive Graeme Steel was not keen to speak about the case last night.

An agency board meeting today would discuss the ruling and any appeal.

Mr Steel would not comment on the containers used in the tests, but it is understood they are the same as those used at the last two Commonwealth Games, in Kuala Lumpur and Victoria, and the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.

The Herald raised the question of the time taken to test the samples when the results of the tests on the A and B samples were made known in January.

Bray was tested in an out-of-competition check on November 22 but the samples were not tested in Sydney until after Christmas.

Swimming New Zealand chief executive Catriona McBean said her association had immediately lifted the ban.

At the time a positive test was made known, Bray admitted he was the athlete involved as he did not want other swimmers under suspicion.