Nadal sues ex-French sports minister
World number one tennis player Rafael Nadal has sued former French sports minister Roselyne Bachelot for wrongly accusing him of covering a dope test. Nadal is seeking a compensation of Euros 100,000 (Rs 76.4 lakh) in damages for the remarks made by Bachelot in March 2016. Bachelot served as a sports minister in the French Government between 2007 and 2010.
What did Bachelot say about Nadal?
In an interview on a French television in March 2016, Roselyne Bachelot said that Rafael Nadal had faked a knee injury in 2012 to hide a positive drug test. Nadal was the 2012 French Open winner, but had withdrawn from the remaining season due citing a knee injury. He did not even represent Spain at the 2012 London Olympics.
Nadal angry after the accusations
Replying to the accusations, Nadal had said, "If somebody like her (Bachelot), who should be serious, can say this stupid stuff then now is moment to say, OK, from now everybody who is going to speak of this kind of stuff with no proof, I'm going to do the same and take legal action against that person." Reportedly, he has never failed a drug test.
Nadal never failed a drug test
Rafael Nadal has never failed a drug test and has time and again denied using any banned drugs. He had also spoken against Maria Sharapova when she was found guilty of using a banned substance.
Bachelot's lawyer blames ITF for poor anti-doping programme
Roselyne Bachelot's lawyer Olivier Chappuis said that the International Tennis Federation's (ITF) anti-doping programme was not strict enough for Nadal. He said, "There is a vast gap between the success he (Nadal) enjoys and the weakness of anti-doping controls." Chappuis also claimed that no sponsor has left Nadal after Bachelot's comments and has faced no damages what so ever.
