Peyton Manning Considers Lawsuit Over Report Claiming He Used HGH While Recovering From Neck Injuries
Peyton Manning took time from his throwing practice on Sunday to talk with Lisa Salters where he told her that the report that claims that he was involved with using HGH were “garbage,” “trash,” and “a joke.” Manning also said that the reports make him feel “sick.”
The interview done by Lisa Salters appeared on ESPN’s Sunday NFL Countdown.
Al Jazeera aired a documentary, called The Dark Side: Secrets of the Sports Dopers, on Sunday. The documentary supposedly exposes a doping ring involving major athletes, including Peyton Manning.
Al Jazeera’s report claims that an undercover reporter secretly recorded pharmacist, Charlie Sly, confessing that he sent human growth hormone (HGH) among other drugs to Peyton Manning’s wife, Ashley Manning.
Al Jazeera’s report says that Sly worked at the Guyer Institute in Indiana, where Manning was treated in 2011 to help him recover from his neck injuries, but Sly told ESPN’s Chris Mortensen that he is a pharmacist who never worked at the institute and “made up” his story to the Al Jazeera reporter.
Manning told Sports Illustrated‘s Peter King he may sue.
“Yeah, I probably will sue. I’m that angry,” Manning told King.
In the interview, Manning said that he had never met or even heard of Charlie Sly and said he was sorry that his wife, Ashley, had to be dragged into the situation.
“Any medical treatments in my life that my wife receives, that’s her business,” said Manning about his wife during the interview. “It had nothing to do with me. Nothing that has ever been sent to her or that my wife has used have I ever taken. Absolutely not.”
HGH was on a list of banned substances for the NFL in 2011, but the league didn’t start testing for it until 2014.
Manning admitted that he did receive treatments at the Guyer Institute in 2011, but all the treatments were approved by the Indianapolis Colts, whom Manning played for at the time.
“I went to the Guyer Clinic. He had a hyperbaric chamber that the coach, trainers and doctors thought might be good for me,” said Manning. “I don’t know if it helped. It didn’t hurt. Time ended up being part of my best medicine along with a lot of my hard work. It stings me, whoever this guy is, insinuating I cut corners and I broke NFL rules to get healthy. It’s a joke.”
Manning named the treatments he did receive at the clinic.
“Hyperbaric chamber, something called ECCP which is supposed to create blood flow in your muscles. I did all 35 days of an hour treatment, watched Hoda and Kathie Lee during my treatment because I was there during normal business hours at 9 a.m. Eastern time. I did that. I was a good patient. I had some nutrient IV therapies that I did that I thought may help me as well. Everything was under Colts authorization. They knew about it. They went with me. Anything else this guy is insinuating is complete garbage.”
The documentary by Al Jazeera highlights months of undercover reporting by Liam Collins, with the focus on athletes that are using performance-enhancing drugs.
Manning’s agent has also denied the allegations, called them “outrageous and wrong,” according to the Huffington Post, and the Denver Broncos stated that they did not find the story to be credible.
When Salters asked Manning how he plans to handle the situation, Manning said he was going to focus on preparing for the next football game Monday night when the Broncos play the Cincinnati Bengals.
“I plan to go throw today a little bit harder. My ball has some extra heat on it today,” said Manning. “I’ve got some built-up anger as you might understand. I’m trying to do what I can to help the Broncos get a win tomorrow night. I’m moving on. I’m not losing any sleep over this report, this slapstick, lies. I’ll keep my head above it and keep pressing on.”
(image via: shutterstock)
