Why a Matildas star is considering appealing her controversial three-month doping ban – ‘I truly believe a mistake has been made’
- Aivi Luki is convinced that ‘a mistake has been made’
- Regarding a three-month suspension for doping violation
- The 39-year-old Matildas defender is likely to appeal the ban
Matildas star Aivi Luik has pleaded her innocence after revealing she has been banned for three months for a doping offence.
Liège believes she was wrongly suspended by Italian anti-doping authorities for her time at Serie A club Pomigliano.
The defender, who left the Italian club in 2022 to play for Swedish BK Hacken, withdrew from the Australian squad ahead of the Olympic Games in Paris.
At the time, the 39-year-old player’s withdrawal from the Matildas league was attributed to a hamstring injury.
Liège was informed by Italian authorities in April that she had been suspended for three months for a doping violation.
‘I still can’t believe I’m in the middle of this and I truly believe a mistake has been made,’ wrote Luik on Instagram on Thursday.
“I hope I can continue the fight to appeal this verdict and prove my innocence.”
The doping accusation came after Liège was sent to a specialist by Pomigliano in March 2022 for treatment of a back injury.
Matildas star Aivi Luik protests her innocence after revealing she has been banned for three months for a doping violation
Luik, 39, believes she was wrongly suspended by Italy’s anti-doping authorities for her time at Serie A club Pomigliano in 2022
On March 29 of that year, a doctor gave her a painkilling injection containing a substance banned in competition under the World Anti-Doping Code, meaning the substance is prohibited on competition days.
Pomigliano is said to have applied for an incorrect exemption certificate from the Italian Anti-Doping Agency, while the club assumed this would give her permission to play.
Luik was not used as a substitute on April 2, after which the Italian anti-doping organization Nado Italia rejected the club’s request for an exemption.
The Australian was eliminated by Pomigliano for the last three games of the season, her contract then expired and she left for Sweden.
Liège, who competed at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and was part of the Matildas’ World Cup squad last year, lost her case at an Italian anti-doping court.
She is considering appealing to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Luik, who has 48 caps for Australia, withdrew from the fight for the Matildas squad for this year’s Olympics, fearing her case would distract from the Paris Games.
“I knew first of all that no matter how hard I tried, I was never going to be able to train optimally and be 100 percent. That’s what every athlete on the team is expected to do,” she said on the Sports Ambassador podcast released Thursday.
Liège played at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and was part of the Matildas’ World Cup squad on home soil last year
‘Also, I was terrified that this would have consequences for the team, because we had a great chance to go into the tournament and finally win a medal.
“I was just so afraid that something like that would happen during the Olympic tournament and what that would mean for the girls and the team in general… that it would take their focus away from them and probably have a negative effect on their performance.
‘I couldn’t do that. I had to withdraw my name from the selection.’
Professional Footballers Australia (PFA) said Luik was in “continued contact” with the organisation throughout the saga.
“We will continue to ensure that she is supported by all resources of the players’ association,” the PFA said in a statement.
‘The Aivi case underlines once again the need to establish an anti-doping system that respects the fundamental rights of athletes and is effective in pursuing its stated goals.’