<p>Mariano Puerta is being banned from tennis for 8 years, effectively destroying his livelihood, because he was contaminated with an amount of stimulant to small to improve his performance. I think that's freaking ridiculous.</p>
<p>I think its sad, but more that they are using him as an example. This is going on a lot in sports now, but I guess it comes down to whether it was intentional or not. Regardless 8 years is a long time. I feel bad for him.</p>
<p>I think tennis athletes get the worst treatment of all [athletes] in regards to dope testing.</p>
<p>In baseball, it's practically a slap on the wrists for the first offence and a "five fingers to the face" for the second one. And I'm talking about after 'reform'!</p>
<p>In tennis, the first time you get caught you have to forfeit a significant number of ranking points, prize money, and suffer a multiple-year suspension.</p>
<p>That is ridiculous, and I do feel for Puerta. He's got a big heart and he has stuck to his story that he was sick in the weeks prior to his testing.</p>
<p>wow, i don't know if they said this in the article, but why couldn't they just give him jail time? that's better than losing your job for 8 years!!!</p>
<p>wow that's harsh. fabrizio's right-- the tennis players do get the worse treatment. it makes me so angry that a huge fuss is made over the football/baseball/etc players, but nothing is actually done. with tennis players, even if the doping test is wrong, you're suspended and you lose everything- and that's that.</p>
<p>i guess the only positive side is that tennis (unlike other sports) <em>really</em> tries to maintain integrity.. though i'm not sure how good their maintenance is...</p>