Banned swimmer Shayna Jack vows bizarre ‘kiss cocaine’ defence will PROVE she is innocent of doping

Banned Australian swimmer Shayna Jack has vowed a ‘kiss cocaine’ case will prove she is innocent of doping.

The 21-year-old returned a positive reading for Ligandrol during an out-of-competition test in Cairns in July.

Jack, who is still waiting for an official hearing following the failed test, appeared on The Sunday Project to once again proclaim her innocence.

‘Have I taken drugs to enhance my ability in my sport? The answer is no,’ Jack said.

Shayna Jack has proclaimed she is innocent in an interview on The Sunday Project

The 21-year-old tested positive for Ligandrol and is facing a four-year ban from swimming if found guilty

The 21-year-old tested positive for Ligandrol and is facing a four-year ban from swimming if found guilty

Jack broke down describing the ‘traumatic’ moment she received a phone call two weeks after a drug test as she prepared for the world championships.

‘Sorry, I haven’t really thought about that day since. It was very traumatic. Not only am I young but it’s something that is so far fetched from what I’d ever think would happen to me,’ she said through tears.

‘When I got that phone call my whole world changed. I was shopping with one of the girls on the team in South Korea. I got a phone call from one of the managers saying that I needed to come back to the hotel.  

‘One of the managers met me and said we have to go up to the head coach’s room. We got in there and he said ASADA has called. But they couldn’t tell him anything until I was present. 

‘We called her back and she said the dreadful words of something prohibited. Something prohibited was found in my sample.’

That ‘something’ turned out to be Ligandrol, a black market muscle-builder. 

Since details of her failed drug test were leaked, the freestyle star said she has had many people approach her reveal they use Ligandrol as a recovery supplement.

‘The more you look into it, and the more you speak to people about it, the more you find out that it’s actually everywhere,’ Jack said.

‘I had a lot of people come forward and tell me they take this drug – general people who go to the gym. Some people were using it as a recovery. People informed me they took it as a drop.’

Jack told Lisa Wilkinson anything she came into contact with prior to the test could have contaminated her sample.

‘There was a case in the past called the ”kiss cocaine case” where someone had taken cocaine and then the partner, who was an athlete, kissed that person and they were contaminated because they had contact with something someone else had taken,’ she said.

That may have been a reference to Canadian pole vaulter Shawn Barber – who was allowed to compete at the Rio Olympics despite testing positive for cocaine.

He avoided a two-year suspension after claiming successfully the drug was passed on to him when he kissed a woman he met on Craigslist. 

Jack broke down in tears discussing the backlash she has received on social media, including death threats, saying her partner Joel Intala had helped her get through the torment of social media bullying. 

‘Recently, I had one of those days and the one thing he did was just bring my dog, Hugo, in. That dog made a big difference in my life. My dog wouldn’t judge me. He knows when I’m upset,’ Jack said.

She also revealed the financial strain she had placed herself under to clear her name.

Jack has claimed a kiss could be the reason she tested positive for a banned muscle-enhancing substance

Jack has claimed a kiss could be the reason she tested positive for a banned muscle-enhancing substance

Jack (pictured at an Australian Dolphins team training camp in July) has received death threats on social media since details of her failed drug test were leaked, saying her partner Joel has had helped her get through the torment of social media bullying

Jack (pictured at an Australian Dolphins team training camp in July) has received death threats on social media since details of her failed drug test were leaked, saying her partner Joel has had helped her get through the torment of social media bullying

‘I’m 21-years-old and I’m paying for a lawyer, a barrister, testing fees – it’s more than what my parents could pay, with them having a house mortgage. I didn’t want them to have that, so I have taken all of the hit.’ 

If Jack fails to prove her innocence to ASADA (Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority), she faces being banned from the sport for up to four years.

The former World Aquatics Championships silver medallist said she hasn’t given up on her Olympic dream.

‘That dream’s not gone, that dream will never disappear,’ she said. 

‘I will keep fighting for it.’

Jack and her mother Pauline leaving an ASADA briefing in Brisbane in August. Jack said she is suffering a financial burden to pay for her legal fees, but says she hasn't given up on her Olympic dream

Jack and her mother Pauline leaving an ASADA briefing in Brisbane in August. Jack said she is suffering a financial burden to pay for her legal fees, but says she hasn’t given up on her Olympic dream



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