Cyborg suspended for steroids

[oslooskar]

Cyborg suspended for steroids
Sat, 07 Jan 04:51:00 2012

The baddest woman on the planet tested positive for anabolic steroids the day before her most devastating career win, according to a release sent out Friday by the California State Athletic Commission.

Cristiane Justino Santos, 26, the Strikeforce women’s featherweight champion, better known as “Cyborg,” tested positive for the anabolic steroid Stanazolol, also known as Winstrol. The test took place on Dec. 16, the day before she knocked out the top contender for the title, Japan’s Hiroko Yamanaka, in 16 seconds.

The result of the fight held on the Dec. 17 Strikeforce show at the Valley View Casino Center in San Diego has been overturned by the commission and ruled a no contest.

“Our primary concern is for the health and safety of fighters,” CSAC Executive Officer George Dodd said in a press release sent out on Friday.

“Anabolic agents and other banned substances put not only the users of those agents at risk, but their opponents as well. The commission simply will not tolerate their use.”

The release stated that the commission received the test results on Dec. 23 from the World Anti-Doping Agency lab at UCLA.

The release didn’t state the length of time of the suspension, but that it would start retroactively on Dec. 16. In the past, California has suspended fighters who have failed steroid tests for one year. Santos, generally considered the best female fighter in the world, has the right to appeal the suspension.

Calls to the commission for comment stated that Dodd had left the office and would be unavailable until Monday.

In its history, the UFC on three occasions has suspended sitting champions after positive steroids test. Josh Barnett was the first, as he tested positive around his 2002 victory over Randy Couture for the heavyweight title in Las Vegas; Tim Sylvia failed in 2003 after a successful title defense against Gan McGee, also in Las Vegas; and lightweight champion Sean Sherk failed in California in 2007 after a title defense against Hermes Franca.

In all three cases, the champions were stripped of their titles.

Stanazolol is the anabolic agent that sprinter Ben Johnson tested positive for in the 1988 Olympics. It is used in weight-class sports because it is believed to lead to increases or maintenance of strength levels while cutting weight to make a weight class.

Generally, injectable Stanazolol clears one’s system when it comes to urine tests in about two months, while the oral version clears in three weeks.

Santos, like most fighters, walks around significantly higher than her weight class and in the past has had trouble making weight (145 pounds).

With a physique reminiscent of a female bodybuilder, Santos had been the most dominant female fighter on the U.S. scene ever since her arrival from Brazil in 2008. She became the first Strikeforce women’s champion on August 15, 2009, when she stopped Gina Carano at the HP Pavilion in San Jose before 13,976 fans. It was the first time a woman’s fight was the main event of a major boxing or MMA show, and the match set ratings records for MMA on Showtime. The fight was the most searched item on Yahoo! and the single most talked about topic in the world that night on Twitter.

Santos, who was noted for fighting with a wild, aggressive, crowd-pleasing style, was too physically strong for Carano that night and finished her with strikes on the ground at 4:59 of Round 1. But Santos’ fights since that time have not generated the same level of interest, and the fight with Yamanaka was the first for Santos in 19 months after a lengthy contract dispute.

Originally a standout handball player, she began fighting at the age of 19. A native of Curitiba, Brazil, she started at the same academy that produced Wanderlei Silva, to whom her fighting style has always been compared, and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. She married Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos, a well-known fighter who became a star in Japan and at one time challenged for the Strikeforce welterweight title.

The couple moved to San Diego, where she teaches and trains at a gym called The Arena.


http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/07012012/58/cyborg-suspended-steroids.html

[Cugel]

[Chrom1um]

Are articles like this normal for European sports coverage? Well-written, well-researched, and informative for casual viewers without being insulting or taking any sort of slant? No op-ed vitriol or journalistic trolling? No condemnation or ridiculous inaccuracies? Just nuanced, professional journalism? Wtf is this shit?

[Fenix]

[local13]

As indicated below, I previously posted about Cyborg being on steroids, but my head was bitten off by some posters for daring to suggest that. I agree you cannot conclusively know whether a competitor is on steroids without proper testing, but the physical appearance of some persons, like Cyborg, or Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa certainly indicates that is likely the case.

Women's MMA is having a hard time getting a foot hold in the popularity of MMA. One way women's MMA could set itself apart from Men's MMA is to establish a legitimate testing system for competitors. If promoters won't require testing, I suggest all women MMA competitors who want to compete in matches against their opponents whom they know are not on steroids, the best way to accomplish this is for the women to unionize or at least sign some binding agreement to provide for steroid testing for competitors before a match.

Rosi smile recently stated she wished MMA was steroid free. I don't know if that would ever be possible, but if the majority of women's MMA fighters signed such an agreement, it would go a long way to ensuring a level playing field in these bouts. MMA is brutal enough; it is not fair to an honest competitor to have to face one that is "juiced up", as it provides a competitive edge for the cheater and increases the risk of injury to her non-cheating opponent.

I would be willing to draft a legal binding agreement between competitors that would require steroid testing free of charge. We just need women who are willing to step up and do the right thing to make sure their sport is clean.

My client Angela Magana has told me repeatedly she would take any testing for steroids. I am sure there are many other female competitors who would be willing to do the same. I hope women's MMA can learn from the Corina Damm's anc Chris Cyborg that an honest sport is more likely to be accepted by the public who pay to watch honest fights between evenly matched opponents.

Respectfully,

Barry Rose

local13


PostForum: Fightergirls Forum Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2010 7:26 pm Subject: Official Marloes Coenen vs Cris Cyborg Discussion Thread
On what kind of stuff is Cyborg?

I don't know whether this was a serious question, but I feel there should be a discussion regarding Cyborg's possible use of steroids. Female MMA has more than en ...

[ace22]

[judoka27]

[Rox21]

I think we all suspected, but it's still very disappointing.

[JDF]

just lost a ton of respect for Cyborg...do promotions test atheletes too? If not I think they should...what a disappointment! Makes u wonder about the losses of her past opponents...I feel bad for Shayna, Gina, Marloes, Jan and the 3 Japanese fighters who lost to her in the past few years. Is there anyway those fighters can contest their losses? I know it probably cant be proven she was on the juice then...but damn! IMO...big promotions like Strikeforce should monitor their athelets more closely not only to keep it fair...but to save themselves the embarrassement of having one of their atheletes busted by the commission...and a "champion" is just more insulting.

[Judo Racer]

Her last fight has been declared a no contest.

All the other results stand as she passed the tests at those events.

[oslooskar]

[GHP]

I am going to have to assume that she wasn't tested in the other events. I wonder if Strikeforce will sign her right back after her suspension?

[pcbcowboy]

Honestly, everyone is going to lose respect on Cris for trying to stay below 160 because that is what Strikeforce has demanded from the female fighters that wanted to fight with them? Cris is still the same person and the same fighter with or without steriods. (Especially when it is a type of steriod that helps to cut) You cannot tell me that Cris is the ONLY female that has done steriods.

I think it sucks for us female fighters who normally walk around 160+ and then when it comes to fight time to squeeze our weight to 145 or 155 then try and hold out till weigh in. IT SUCKS!

Cris, I still have respect for you and good luck!

[oslooskar]

[pcbcowboy]

My point was clear.....