Swimming Australia Sends Isaac Cooper Home From Commonwealth Games Training Camp For Team Violation
A little more than a week shy of the start of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England, Swimming Australia has announced that two members of its delegation will not compete as previously planned. Isaac Cooper, a rising force Down Under in the backstroke events, has been sent home by team officials, while Paralympian Tim Disken has been ruled out for medical reasons.
In a press release, Swimming Australia indicated that Cooper was sent home from the Dolphins’ training camp with “wellbeing challenges, including the use of medication.” The press release noted that Cooper acknowledged his mistakes and understood the consequences. When contacted by Swimming World, Swimming Australia indicated it would not go into detail about the medication, as it relates to Cooper’s personal medication information.
The reference to the use of medication triggered flashbacks to the incident at the 2012 Olympic Games, in which several members of the Australian Olympic team took the sleeping drug, Stilnox, as part of a bonding practice. Swimming Australia told Swimming World that Stilnox was not the reason Cooper was sent home.
“The welfare of our athletes remains our absolute priority,” Swimming Australia said in its release. “Swimming Australia is vigilant in educating athletes of their obligations under the National Integrity Framework and will continue to provide all necessary support to ensure they uphold the highest standards and behaviors when representing Australia.”
Cooper represented Australia at last summer’s Olympic Games and the recently concluded World Championships in Budapest. At the World Champs, Cooper finished eighth in the 50 backstroke and advanced to the semifinals of the 100 backstroke.
According to Swimming Australia, Disken recently underwent surgery and experienced a setback in his recovery which will not allow him to compete at the Commonwealth Games. The governing body, citing medical-privacy laws, could not provide additional details.
I love it..”the medication”… perfect umbrella that prevents from calling for more details given confidentiality of health records.
very strange if its “personal medication” then why would you send someone home if they were prescribed the medicine by their doctor? something doesnt add up.
Swimming is starting to have a problem with transparency, it seems.