Former Belgian tennis player Christophe Rochus is no stranger to controversy, especially when it comes to doping and Rafael Nadal. His off-the-wall remarks have included a call to legalizing doping in sports because he believes that players take advantage of performance enhancement drugs anyway, not that he or his brother, ATP player Olivier Rochus, ever have. Less than a year after Tio Toni had some choice words for him, he is back in the limelight, this time in connection with Rafa’s performance at the Australian Open final.
Christophe Rochus and Jean Paul Loth were two of several commentators for Eurosport France during the final against Stanislas Wawrinka on January 26, 2014. Commenting on Rafa’s extended MTO, and his subsequent return to take the third set, Rochus speculated that Rafa was faking the injury. He further insinuated that Rafa had gone into the locker room to “get a shot“.
Given the history that Rochus has with his penchant for unsubstantiated allegations, it is hardly surprising that he would find Rafa’s efforts attributable to anything but fine sportsmanship. What is surprising, however, is that of all the reputable experts available, Eurosport France would choose him as a consultant for this potentially historical final.
The French, however, took to Twitter to raise objections to the absurd allegations. Adeline Auger, a writer with Tennis Troteur, stated in her article that Nicolas Mahut, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga’s coach Thierry Ascione, and Alize Cornet were among the first to respond in support of Rafa.
Even if Rochus is within his rights to state his opinion, was it a good idea for Eurosport France to take him on as a consultant, given his history? And what of Rochus himself: Where does the animosity come from?
Every time Rafa falls victim to a false accusation, we look the other way, because we know that the man, the champion he is, has nothing to prove or defend. But maleficent voices, such as that of Rochas’, only tend to get louder when they are given a platform to speak from. We sincerely hope that media outlets make better choices in the future.
So what do you think of this episode? Write your comments below.
Nadie puede dudar de tu integridad, eres transpararente, Vamos Rafa estamos contigo
If most of you Nadal apologists knew ‘anything’ about how the ‘Tour’ really works you might be very very very surprised. As my dad once told me, the average IQ is 100 for a reason – most people aren’t very bright.
I know two top 300 players who have confirmed that Nadal takes drugs (p.e.d’s). It is a very sad state of affairs. Nadal is on yet another injury time-out from tennis and will no doubt win what ever major he next plays in, once his recovery (likely drug-related) is complete. There are a few obvious signs of Nadal’s drug use, but none more obvious than he is the only player to not play on the tour, then re-enter and win grand slams. If you know how tennis works, you must play tournaments and maintain that level and conditioning to be in top form. On the opposite end of the spectrum is Federer, when he takes 2 weeks off, he loses his form and it takes an entire season (6-9 months) to find form again. If and when the ITF decides to go public with this information (or are forced to), those Slams that Nadal won under the influence should be awarded to the runner-up (as was the case after Armstrong’s exposure), which in most cases is his rival Federer. I am fans of both these players and their rivalry and it saddens me to have Nadal’s drug use confirmed by fellow tour players. They also said drug use is prevalent at that level of tennis, so Nadal is not the only one to blame.
Trash talkers talk trash, cant stand it because Rafa. is such a Awesome Athlete so they gota accuse him of being a doper/ get a life jealous ones!!!
Mama mia! What a cheap way to spread senseless rumors. I can write 1000 comments like this.
Please tell your name and the names of your informants.
that isn’t a question it’s a fact…no human body is capable to do what he does…the same with novak and so on…you people are just dumb…you just don’t see the truth becouse you don’t wana have a doped IDOL…sheeps that follow the stream…beee beee beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Everyone is entitled to have their own opinion, but have a look at how many times Rafa, Novak, Roger, Andy, and all the major players were tested, both during tournaments and out of competition. This is only by the ITF and doesn’t include their respective country’s antidoping testing and controls, which are in addition to ITF.http://www.itftennis.com/antidoping/statistics/data.aspx
Amstrong was superior, beloved with a huge fan base and well, we know how that one how end up. I dont think Roches is that crazy to make a public comment like this without holding water. But as My father use to say, sooner or later the truth will show up so we have to be man enough to face the consequences of our lies….
French media has always been cynical with Rafa. Didn’t they wake him up in the middle of the night during FO to test him? So what was the result? NOTHING! Yes NOTHING! So basically French media is condoning this kind of baseless accusation. If Rafa were in the US, he would have sued their pants off.
Hi DD, thanks for your comment. To be fair, it’s the ITF that conducts drug tests under the WADA code. So it isn’t necessarily country-specific, and has nothing to do with the media.
Estamos contigo Rafa firmemente… y completamente seguros que eres el numero 1
Aren’t there any defamation laws in France, because Rochus defamed him on TV to a large European audience. Does he think Rafa “doped” at 17, because he won the French Open back then too? If Rafa was doping, and went off court to “get a shot,” don’t you think he would’ve pulled out the Australian Open victory? Rochus is just vying for attention. Let’s all stop giving him attention! He’s a loser. Rafa will always be a winner and in the Hall of Fame.
Everyone is jealous of Rafa, not only because of the way he plays but also his sportsmanship and humble personality amongst all the fame and fortune he enjoys. Rafa inspires so many of us and gives so much pleasure in the way he plays. Tennis would be nothing without Rafa.
It is a shame! Not so many people know Rochus and that is where he is coming from! Being in the news by commenting on Eurosports about a great Champ like Rafa? Come on grow up , and apologize to Rafa and his fans. You have lost all respect people had towards you, if there was any!!!
C’est de la pire jalousie triste pour toi c.rochus et si t’as pas réussi c’est pas le problème de RAFA.
Been a loser in his carrer and now he is well-known than before,what a joke!
Well said Yin, Vmoooooooos Rafa!
What a jerk! You are an absolute waste of time Christophe Rochus. Shame on you and I feel sorry for your brother Olivier being related to an idiot like you. Vamos Rafa!
Rafa is the best. Been following tennis for a while never got to hear about Rochus. Did he only play in ITF
C’est un sport magnifique dont mes enfants font partie et sont fans de ces grands joueurs , je trouve triste d’avoir de telles réactions quand on connait les sacrifices et les efforts à fournir pour arriver au sommet.Mr Rochus n’a malheureusement pas aussi bien réussi qu’eux cette forme de jalousie n’a aucun rapport avec ce sport c’est juste un enfant jaloux de ne pas pouvoir atteindre les sommets et aujiourd’hui il est trop tard pour lui.Je regrettde que Mr Rochus soit belge car l’image qu’il donne est déplorable.Rafa surtout ne change rien.Une maman dont la fille est heureuse d’avoir croisé ton chemin merci.
God may damn envy and jealousy… rafa is a super big big big credit to tennis… He is a perfect legend… love you so much vamos rafa…
who is rochus??? a bloody idiot person who doesn’t know how to talk about a legend player like rafa… Just ignore this bloody xxxxxxx person… He is jealous of such a superb legend like rafa… vamos rafa…
Pure envy and jealousy coming from a looser.
Nadal is such a great professional there is no doubt of his conduct.
Nobody should give this looser a place to speak such foolishness.
IN RAFA……WE TRUST…
It is pure Jealousy by Rochus ! Had he tested his blood for drugs ??? Has Rochus any real scientific evidence, before accusing ???
Hope Rafa is strong enough to disregard this rubbish and looks forwards to recover and fight for more wins in coming tournaments.
Vamos Rafa !!!!