dal takes legal action after doping accusations

Madrid, April 26: Spanish tennis great Rafael dal has confirmed that he was going to sue former French sports minister Roselyne Bachelot for alleging he had used performance enhancing drugs.

The news on Monday came a day after dal won the Torneo del Godo in Barcelo for a ninth time to add to his win in Monte Carlo a week previously, reports Xinhua.

“I am making public the defamation lawsuit against Roselyne Bachelot that I have filed today April 25 before the Paris law courts. This legal proceeding was instigated after Bachelot made offensive remarks last March on Le Grand 8 program on French channel D8,” dal said in the statement.

Bachelot had said in the wake of Maria Sharapova’s positive in this year’s Australian Open that dal’s 12 month absence through injury in 2012 was “without doubt due to a positive (drug test). When you see a tennis player who stops playing for long months, it is because he has tested positive and because they are covering it up”. IANS