Doping expert criticizes acquittal of handball player Portner

Doping in handball - Doping expert criticizes acquittal of handball player Portner

Doping expert Fritz Soergel strongly criticized the Handball Bundesliga's decision to clear goalkeeper Nikola Portner of doping charges. "I don't care about that at all. He wouldn't be the first athlete to have a good reputation and still have doped," Soergel told Handball-World and expressed his opinion independently of the case of the Swiss national team goalkeeper. "Anyone who has a doping substance in their blood or urine should be suspended."

Portner was suspended from all sports activities of his club in April after a positive test for Methamphetamine. The HBL lifted the suspension against the 30-year-old goalkeeper of SC Magdeburg on Wednesday and justified its decision with low detection values and a search of his home that yielded no findings. The National Anti-Doping Agency Germany (NADA) will examine this decision and its justification.

Soergel also criticized the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). "WADA needs to think about how to deal with half-lives of doping substances like Crystal Meth and scientifically determine clear-cut limits of what is allowed at the competition," demanded the expert. "Simply saying that it's a low concentration and therefore he couldn't have doped is a layman's discussion, where one has great respect for nanograms and considers it very low. That cannot be the basis for an acquittal."

NADA Guidelines Magdeburg HBL Statement Report Handball-World

1. Fritz Sörgel, a renowned doping expert, voiced his disapproval towards the Handball Bundesliga's decision to exonerate Nikola Portner from doping charges.
2. The German club, SC Magdeburg's goalkeeper, Nikola Portner, was initially suspended from all sports activities in April following a positive test for Methamphetamine.
3. Despite the positivity for Methamphetamine, the Handball Bundesliga lifted Portner's suspension in April, citing low detection values and a lack of evidence during a home search.
4. WADA, the World Anti-Doping Agency, is under scrutiny by doping expert Fritz Sörgel, urged to reconsider its approach to dealing with substances like Crystal Meth and establish clear-cut limits.
5. In Switzerland, Portner currently serves as the national team's goalkeeper, and the country's Handball scene is keeping a close eye on the ongoing developments in Portner's doping case.
6. The National Anti-Doping Agency Germany (NADA) has announced it will scrutinize the decision and justification made by the Handball Bundesliga regarding Nikola Portner's doping charges.
7. The Handball Bundesliga incident is not the first time German sports have grappled with allegations of doping, and such controversies have cast a shadow on the integrity and reputation of German sports, including Saksony-Anhalt's Handball Bundesliga team, SC Magdeburg.

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