“Ryk and I used drugs,” says ex-girlfriend Amanda Beard

South Africa’s Ryk Neethling today dismissed claims by his ex-girlfriend, American Amanda Beard, that they abused drugs during the time they were together, a relationship that began in 1999 and lasted until they both won Olympic gold at the Athens 2004 Summer Games. Read The Star

Beard alleged while promoting her autobiography “In the Water They Can’t See You Cry” that ecstasy, cocaine and acid were taken during a two-month SA stay during which she met Neethling’s family. And wrote in the biography that she would only get along with Neethling when she was using drugs. She also made claims that he was jealous of her athletic success, and their rocky relationship was littered with fighting, and said after one fight, she resorted to self-mutilation to calm herself.

“It should be noted that international athletes are subjected to frequent random drug tests in and out of competition,” was Neethling’s response to the allegations.

“I passed every one of the close-on 200 blood and urine tests I did during my career.”