Aly Raisman drug tested on Access Hollywood set

Published On May 18, 2013 | By Jill Saftel

When Aly Raisman, world champion gymnast and Dancing with the Stars favorite, arrived on the set of Access Hollywood on Thursday, she probably wasn’t expecting to see an official from the World Anti-Doping Agency. But according to Yahoo!, that’s exactly who awaited Raisman at the show’s set, there to collect testing samples.

And just like that, she was forced to do a random drug test during a television appearance. Although the test was a surprise, Raisman said she is not concerned.

“I’m clean, so I don’t have anything to worry about,” she said.

But still, the timing of the test is pretty crazy.

“I just drank a lot of water, so I’m normally pretty quick,” Raisman told the show’s hosts, Billy Bush and Kit Hoover.

The drop-in tests, like the one Raisman underwent Thursday, are “random,” but she did question the timing of this one, considering she’s a finalist on Dancing with the Stars and about to dance in the season finale.

“It’s the World Anti-Doping Agency. They haven’t [tested me] since the Olympics, and they choose the finale week of ‘Dancing with the Stars’ to come,” she said. “Out of all the days since the Olympics, they choose like, the craziest week.”

Drug tests are definitely part of any athletes work, but could the World Anti-Doping Agency not have chosen a better time to test Raisman? Maybe even wait until she gets home from a TV appearance? It’s not as if she’s someone they’ve ever had issues with before, and it does seem a bit extreme to test her right now, especially on the set of a television appearance.

If anything, the whole situation continues to portray Raisman in a positive light. Judging by her remarks, she handled the surprise well and continues to make Massachusetts proud.

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About The Author

Jill studies journalism at Northeastern University, covers Hockey East for College Hockey News and is the sports editor for The Huntington News. You can follow her on Twitter at @jillsaftel, just don't ask her to choose between hockey and baseball, it's impossible.