WELLINGTON, New Zealand, August 24. SWIMMING New Zealand has instituted a private sanction on national team member Daniel Bell after an alcohol-related infraction upon the completion of the 2009 FINA World Championships according to a report by the NZPA.
Bell, who has competed since Worlds with three medals and a pair of national records as part of the Australian Short Course Championships, "was admitted to a hospital in Rome suffering from excessive alcohol intake following the completion of the world championships three weeks ago," according to the NZPA report.
While Swimming New Zealand has imposed punishment, it still plans on supporting Bell going forward.
"The only comment I want to make is that too often in our society we go out vilifying these young people," SNZ chief executive Mike Byrne told the NZPA. "Right now we've got a choice with Daniel, he's a highly talented athlete. We can either vilify him and sanction him heavily or we can support him and try to help him through these problems that he's got. We want to support him and help him become a great swimmer still."