footyhead
16th May 2003, 03:15 PM
It really is becomming a joke how much of a "Big Brother" the AFL is becomming.
This from AFL.com (sorry I don't know how to link)
Aker attack: Just so much hot air
16 May 2003 Herald Sun
By DARREN CARTWRIGHT and MICHELANGELO RUCCI
BRISBANE Lions Brownlow medallist Jason Akermanis says the hypoxicator issue is a classic example of the tall poppy syndrome.
Tall poppy: Brownlow medallist Jason Akermanis sees this as another example of the AFL trying to cut the Lions down to size.
And Port Adelaide yesterday revealed its players have been using the respiratory machine for two years - and will continue to do so.
Last night Akermanis and teammate Justin Leppitsch said concern about the machines was blown out of all proportion.
"It's another example of the AFL trying to standardise any advances we might make," he said.
Akermanis said the Lions were in the spotlight because they had "gone all right in the past couple of years".
"If we were the Western Bulldogs this wouldn't be a problem we have to face," he said. "It's just another thing the AFL are doing to piss people off up here."
Like the Western Bulldogs' Nathan Brown, Akermanis owns one of the Russian-designed hypoxicator machines which he has been using since 1999.
As well as Akermanis and Leppitsch, Lions players Alastair Lynch, Chris Scott and Michael Voss also admitted this week to having used the machines.
Akermanis was adamant that using the machine was not cheating. "It's one of your natural rights to breathe. What about asthmatics? They need ventolin," he said.
Akermanis said the machine was more advantageous to him because he was a speed-based athlete, but endurance athletes such as Simon Black "don't get anything out of it".
"You just notice you can run a bit further with a bit less pain, but exercise and diet can have the same effect," he said.
Leppitsch, who used the hypoxicator briefly four years ago and has not used it since, said it was a "blown-out issue".
"They are going to have to stop everything if they are going to look at people improving themselves," he said. "What's next? You can't have a knee reconstruction because it is performance-enhancing?"
Lynch, who has a long history of chronic fatigue syndrome, said the hypoxicator did not help his condition but he had found it helpful anyway.
"It's good, but this is not a thing that turns a full-forward into an onballer," he said. "It adds one or two percentage points to your performance."
Port chief executive Brian Cunningham yesterday questioned how far the AFL would go to stop teams seeking the best from their players.
"We do have a hypoxic chamber, we have used it for a couple of years and we see no problem continuing to use it," he said.
"If we trained the squad at a higher altitude would the AFL be concerned? Clubs must not lose their right or desire to be at the cutting edge of training their players."
This from AFL.com (sorry I don't know how to link)
Aker attack: Just so much hot air
16 May 2003 Herald Sun
By DARREN CARTWRIGHT and MICHELANGELO RUCCI
BRISBANE Lions Brownlow medallist Jason Akermanis says the hypoxicator issue is a classic example of the tall poppy syndrome.
Tall poppy: Brownlow medallist Jason Akermanis sees this as another example of the AFL trying to cut the Lions down to size.
And Port Adelaide yesterday revealed its players have been using the respiratory machine for two years - and will continue to do so.
Last night Akermanis and teammate Justin Leppitsch said concern about the machines was blown out of all proportion.
"It's another example of the AFL trying to standardise any advances we might make," he said.
Akermanis said the Lions were in the spotlight because they had "gone all right in the past couple of years".
"If we were the Western Bulldogs this wouldn't be a problem we have to face," he said. "It's just another thing the AFL are doing to piss people off up here."
Like the Western Bulldogs' Nathan Brown, Akermanis owns one of the Russian-designed hypoxicator machines which he has been using since 1999.
As well as Akermanis and Leppitsch, Lions players Alastair Lynch, Chris Scott and Michael Voss also admitted this week to having used the machines.
Akermanis was adamant that using the machine was not cheating. "It's one of your natural rights to breathe. What about asthmatics? They need ventolin," he said.
Akermanis said the machine was more advantageous to him because he was a speed-based athlete, but endurance athletes such as Simon Black "don't get anything out of it".
"You just notice you can run a bit further with a bit less pain, but exercise and diet can have the same effect," he said.
Leppitsch, who used the hypoxicator briefly four years ago and has not used it since, said it was a "blown-out issue".
"They are going to have to stop everything if they are going to look at people improving themselves," he said. "What's next? You can't have a knee reconstruction because it is performance-enhancing?"
Lynch, who has a long history of chronic fatigue syndrome, said the hypoxicator did not help his condition but he had found it helpful anyway.
"It's good, but this is not a thing that turns a full-forward into an onballer," he said. "It adds one or two percentage points to your performance."
Port chief executive Brian Cunningham yesterday questioned how far the AFL would go to stop teams seeking the best from their players.
"We do have a hypoxic chamber, we have used it for a couple of years and we see no problem continuing to use it," he said.
"If we trained the squad at a higher altitude would the AFL be concerned? Clubs must not lose their right or desire to be at the cutting edge of training their players."