GoFundMe Page Established To Support Aussie Olympic Medalist Brenton Rickard
A little more than a month ago, Australian breaststroke legend Brenton Rickard earned a legal victory when a doping case against him was thrown out by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. That decision by the CAS arrived on the heels of Rickard – eight years after he raced at the 2012 Olympic Games in London – having a saved urine sample return an adverse analytical finding.
At the 2012 Games, Rickard competed in the preliminaries of the 400-meter medley relay, with Australia going on to earn the bronze medal in the final. With doping-test results retained, as is common practice, Rickard was informed that he had tested positive for a trace amount of Furosemide, which can be used as a masking agent. That positive result endangered the Australians of losing their medals from the 400 medley relay in London.
Rickard, a highly respected team leader during his days as an Aussie Dolphin, fought the charges, a decision that generated costly legal fees. Eventually, the charges against Rickard were dropped and his name was cleared, but not before he endured significant financial damage and a hit to his reputation.
Now, a GoFundMe fundraising effort has been launched to help Rickard, who is the father of two children, help pay his legal costs and regain his financial footing. Because of the original accusations, Rickard saw opportunities such as speaking engagements dry up.
“He was wrongfully accused of taking a non-approved diuretic and spent 19 months fighting the case from when he was first notified until the case was dropped, in the meantime costing him his home and life savings and most im,portantly his reputation,” states the GoFundMe page. “He has now been left with massive legal costs for a situation that should never have happened and Brenton has received no compensation financially or emotionally from this nightmare from the authority that wrongfully accused, charged and then dropped his case and charges against him.
“He has said that he had to contest the accusations as it not only affected his name and reputation but also the names and reputations of his fellow swimmers. He has also stated that as a result of the time fighting this ‘there is a part of his life that he has lost.’”
Here is a link to the GoFundMe page supporting Rickard.