San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Marquise Goodwin has found himself in some kind of back-and-forth with the United States Anti-Doping Agency, and he and the 49ers released a pair of statements on Tuesday. USADA is expected to release a statement regarding Goodwin’s failure to submit a “Whereabouts” form as part of their PED testing protocol.
Goodwin has competed on the national and international level as a track and field athlete, but he gave it up over a year ago to focus solely on football. According to Goodwin, he did not inform USADA that he was retired from track, and so they included him in their pool of 2017 testing candidates. A person who is competing has to submit a “Whereabouts” form so that testers can find them for random testing. Goodwin has not submitted the form since retiring from track, and it would appear USADA was not aware of his retirement.
Goodwin and the 49ers each issued statements. Goodwin’s explains the details, and the 49ers states that the NFL informed them Goodwin will not be subject to discipline under the NFL’s PED policy.
Statement from 49ers wide receiver Marquise Goodwin
“Never in my life have I failed a test. I have never been opposed to testing and, in fact, have always been compliant with each and every protocol and policy associated with my competitive career in track and field. More than a year ago, I decided to cease competing in the sport in order to concentrate 100 percent on my NFL career. Therefore, I discontinued all practices associated with competing in track and field, including submitting my ‘Whereabouts’ information. It appears that because I did not inform USADA of my plans, my name was inadvertently included in their 2017 testing pool. I greatly appreciate the support of the San Francisco 49ers and the National Football League as I work to clarify this matter.”
Statement from the San Francisco 49ers regarding wide receiver Marquise Goodwin
“We recently learned that the United States Anti-Doping Agency plans to release a statement regarding Marquise Goodwin’s failure to submit ‘Whereabouts’ paperwork as part of their testing protocol. Marquise informed our organization quite some time ago that he has no intentions of competing in track and field and has been entirely focused on his football career for more than a year. We have been in touch with the League office regarding this matter, and understand that Marquise will not be subject to discipline under the NFL Policy on Performance-Enhancing Substances as a result of USADA's decision.”