Posted on 12/15/2009 8:02:24 AM PST by marshmallow
The Canadian doctor who performed a controversial medical procedure on Tiger Woods is under criminal investigation for drug violations on both sides of the border, bringing scrutiny to his colleagues, including one who worked closely with BALCO athletes and Yankee superstar Alex Rodriguez.
Dr. Tony Galea was arrested in October and his Toronto clinic was raided by Canadian authorities after his assistant was detained at the U.S.-Canadian border and reportedly found to be in possession of illegal drugs, including human growth hormone (hGH) and Actovegin - a drug extracted from calf's blood that has been banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency.
Galea flew to Woods' Windermere, Fla., home at the request of his agents to treat the golfer earlier this year with his platelet-rich plasma injection therapy, also known as "blood spinning."
Galea has attracted a mystique in sports medicine circles for his advocacy of the process, which involves spinning blood in a centrifuge and reinjecting it into injured joints in the hope of accelerating healing.
A Royal Canadian Mounted Police spokesman said charges against Galea are expected to be filed on Friday in a Toronto courtroom, and while an attorney for Galea told the Daily News that his client is innocent of any wrongdoing, U.S. anti-doping officials said that Galea is "definitely on our radar." U.S. law enforcement officials are also believed to be investigating Galea.
Galea and Mark Lindsay, a Canadian chiropractor who treated Woods and managed Rodriguez's rehabilitation this summer from hip surgery, are principals at a Toronto clinic called Affinity Health.
Lindsay also treated ex-Yankee pitcher Chien-Ming Wang, who was recovering from a hip injury, this year. He has worked with former NFL star Bill Romanowski, and sprinters Tim Montgomery and Marion Jones, who all testified in front of the grand jury that investigated the Bay......
(Excerpt) Read more at nydailynews.com ...
The comparative pictures should be Tiger at 25 and Tiger at 33, not at 32 and 33. Yes, Tiger met with that one suspect doctor within the past year, but that has only added fuel to the fire. My understanding is that the suggestions Tiger has been using performance enhancers has been going on for years now.
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