Fully disagree, its a drug test...accidentally finding out that a pro fighter uses cocaine...should not be frowned upon at all...that is what the purpose of it is.
I do not get what you mean by the right test? the right test that would continue to allow him to use hard drugs? the wrong test that ruins his image? What more important to the sport, the fans? IMO there is no wrong test when it comes to professional athletes and attempting to maintain a clean sport.
Bad luck for Jones sure...but he made the choice...and I am positive he had no idea that cocaine was not going to be tested when he took the test...they do not release that kinda information when they come a knockin.
Yes, it should be frowned on and should never happen again. You're looking at this from a certain perspective because of what was found in his system (and possibly because of who we are talking about). The issue is bigger than that. This is the NAC, a government entity if I'm not mistaken, going beyond its permitted scope in dealing with someone's body, privacy, and health.
The purpose of the out-of-competition test was not to find out if he was on hard drugs, as you said. The purpose is to find out if he was on
banned drugs. The "right test" as I referred to it would have tested only for drugs that are banned out-of-competition, i.e., the test they were supposed to give him. They didn't do that. They performed the "wrong test," and the NAC has admitted that it was a mistake.
Your position seems to really be that cocaine should be banned and tested for at all times. If that's your position, that's a fair position. But it's irrelevant to this situation. In this situation Jones was told he'd be tested for A. He agreed to be tested for A. But he was actually tested for A + B, with B being a substance that (a) wasn't against the rules; but (b) has a strong stigma attached to it (and fairly so, I suppose).
There is absolutely is a "wrong test" when it comes to professional athletes. The "wrong test" is any test other than the one that is supposed to be given and to which the athlete has consented to take. Just because you or I didn't know that there's a difference between out-of-competition and in-competition testing doesn't mean the athletes that actually take the tests are equally unaware. (And I would wager that athletes who like to "party" might be especially aware of what the commissions are allowed to test them for and when.)
As for what's most important for the sport, I would vote for a competent commission.
