- Nathan O'Neill
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Nathan O'Neill Personal information Full name Nathan O'Neill Born 23 November 1974
Sydney, AustraliaHeight 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in) Weight 72 kg (160 lb; 11.3 st) Team information Current team Bahati foundation pro cycling Discipline Road Role Rider Rider type Time Trial specialist Professional team(s) 1 Sep–31 Dec 1999
2000
2001–2002
2003
2004
2005
2006–29 Oct 2007[1]Navigare - Gaerne (Trainee)
Panaria - Gaerne
Panaria - Fiordo
Saturn Cycling Team
Colavita - Olive Oil
Navigators Insurance Cycling Team
Health Net Pro Cycling TeamMajor wins 
National Time Trial Champion x8Medal recordCompetitor for AustraliaRoad bicycle racing Commonwealth Games Gold 2006 Melbourne Time trial Infobox last updated on
14 January 2007Nathan O'Neill (born 23 November 1974[2]) is a former Australian professional road racing cyclist.
Contents
Biography
Career
O'Neill was born in Sydney in 1974. He began cycling in 1989, when he attended a 16 kilometre handicap race before school, following the suggestion by a friend. The race started at 6am and O'Neill won it. He went on to win numerous medals in the junior ranks at the Australian National Track Championships. At the Junior UCI Track Cycling World Championships in 1992, O'Neill won the bronze medal as part of the team pursuit squad. In 1995, he won the silver medal in the road time trial at the Oceania Cycling Championships whilst nursing a broken pelvis.[3]
From 1 September 1999, he rode for the Navigare - Gaerne team as a trainee rider before turning professional for the team in 2000 at the age of 25, under new sponsors Panaria - Gaerne. He represented Australia at the 2000 Summer Olympics, finishing 19th in the individual time trial. He stayed with the same team for 2001–2002, under Panaria - Fiordo's sponsorship. O'Neill won the bronze medal in the individual time trial at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, United Kingdom.
In 2003, O'Neill signed with the Saturn Cycling Team, 2004 for Colavita - Olive Oil, 2005 for Navigators Insurance Cycling Team and finally for Health Net Pro Cycling Team in 2006.
At the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Australia, 21 March 2006, O'Neill won the Gold Medal in the Time Trial finishing in a time fo 48:37.29.
He became the Australian National Time Trial Champion for the eighth time in January 2007, it was the fourth consecutive time.[4]
Positive drug test
On 12 August 2007, at the Tour of Elk Grove, O'Neill provided a sample which tested positive for the appetite suppressant drug phentermine.[5] O'Neill received notification of this on 23 September 2007. Later, the B sample also tested positive, he admitted that he had used the medicine for the prescribed purpose out of competition. The drug is not banned for use out-of-competition, and O'Neill maintains that his error is due to a longer than expected clearance time for the drug, compounded by another supplement which increased his urinary pH that he was also taking in the days leading up to the event.[6] On 6 November 2007, O'Neill was terminated by the Health Net Pro Cycling Team.[5]
On 13 June 2008 the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled that O'Neill bore "no significant negligence" in registering a positive finding for Phentermine, and was given a 15 month suspension, from 12 August 2007 – 12 November 2008.
The Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority (ASADA), the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the UCI jointly appealed to the CAS to increase the suspension period "on the grounds that the athlete had not demonstrated no significant fault or negligence". The CAS also stated that "Also of importance is the evidence from Mr O’Neill that he took the risk because he was of the view that without Phentermine he was not going to be competitive. Mr O’Neill therefore self-medicated with a view of gaining a competitive advantage." The suspension was extended to the maximum period of two years, due to come to end on 13 June 2010.[7]
Note: The previous paragraph concerning Mr. O'Neill's suspension does not take into account time already served from the date the sample was taken until the date of the original CAS hearing on 13 June 2008. If Mr. O'Neill had raced beyond when the sample was taken, then the date of ineligibility would begin as soon as he finished competing, or when he was notified of the lab's finding. The difference being a week. O'Neill's last race he competed in was the Tour of Missouri, ending on 16 September 2007. O'Neill was officially notified on 21 September 2007. Read the official correspondence from the Court of Arbitration for Sport to Cycling Australia referencing the suspension here [8] CAS letter to Cycling Australia dated 4 June 2009.
Personal life
O'Neill is married, and his wife Karen gave birth to their daughter, Lydia Elaine O’Neill in 2006.[9] He suffered a broken hip, and was involved in a horrific interstate roll over crash in 2007.[6] He currently lives in Braselton, Georgia, in the United States.[3]
Major achievements
- 1994
- 1st
Australian National Time Trial Championships - 1996
- 1st Australian National Time Trial Championships
- 1997
- 1st, GP Industria Commercio e Artigianato Aglianese Internazionale
- 1998
- 1st Australian National Time Trial Championships
- 2000
- 1st, Stage 5, Tour of Sweden
- 2001
- 1st, Stage 10, Tour de Langkawi
- 2002
- 1st Australian National Time Trial Championships
- 3rd, Commonwealth Games Men's Time Trial
- 2003
- 1st, Stage 1, Le Tour de Langkawi + overall leader for 7 days
- 1st, Stage 2, Sea Otter Classic
- 1st, Overall, Sea Otter Classic
- 1st, Prologue, Redlands Bicycle Classic
- 1st, Stage 2, Redlands Bicycle Classic
- 1st, Mountains classification, Redlands Bicycle Classic
- 1st, Canadian Open Road Championships
- 2004
- 1st Australian National Time Trial Championships
- 2005
- 1st Australian National Time Trial Championships
- 1st, Overall, Grand Prix de Beauce
- 1st, Stage 4, Le Tour de Langkawi
- 1st, Stage 4a (TT), Tour de Beauce
- 1st, Stage 3 (TT), Cascade Cycling Classic
- 2006
- 1st Australian National Time Trial Championships
- 1st, Commonwealth Games Men's Time Trial
- 1st, Overall, Redlands Bicycle Classic
- 1st, Overall, Mt. Hood Cycling Classic
- 1st, Stage 4 (Bend Research Inc. - Arnold Market TT) – Cascade Cycling Classic
- 2007
- 1st Australian National Time Trial Championships
- 1st, Overall and Prologue ITT, Tour of the Gila
See also
- List of doping cases in cycling
- List of sportspeople sanctioned for doping offences
References
- ^ "Health Net releases O'Neill after positive test". cyclingnews.com. 7 November 2007. http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=news/2007/nov07/nov07news.
- ^ "Profile". cyclebase.nl. http://www.cyclebase.nl/?lang=en&news=en&pc=normal&page=renner&db=m&id=11822.
- ^ a b "Biography". Official website. http://www.nathanoneill.com/biography.shtml.
- ^ cyclingnews.com "2007 Australian Road Championships". Cyclingnews.com. 11–14 January 2007. http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/road/2007/jan07/AORC07/?id=results/AORC073 cyclingnews.com.
- ^ a b "O'Neill suspended following doping positivex". Velo News. 6 November 2007. http://www.velonews.com/news/fea/13630.0.html.
- ^ a b "Nathan O'Neill - Statement". 8 November 2007. http://www.dailypeloton.com/displayarticle.asp?pk=11955.
- ^ "Professional cyclist Nathan O’Neill’s sanction increased on appeal" (PDF). Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority. 2009-21-2009. http://www.asada.gov.au/news/releases/current/asada_release_090121_Nathan%20O-Neill%20sanction%20increased%20on%20appeal.pdf.
- ^ "CAS letter to Cycling Australia dated June 4, 2009" (PDF). http://www.nathanoneill.com/CourtOfArbitrationForSport-June-4-2009.pdf.
- ^ Official website
External links
Categories:- 1974 births
- Living people
- Australian cyclists
- Sportspeople from Sydney
- Cyclists at the 2000 Summer Olympics
- Olympic cyclists of Australia
- Commonwealth Games competitors for Australia
- Cyclists at the 2006 Commonwealth Games
- Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Australia
- Doping cases in cycling
- Australian sportspeople in doping cases
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