Basketball: Dickel regrets cannabis use

Tall Black Mark Dickel, who tested positive for cannabis and was suspended for two matches, says the best apology he can make is performing well for New Zealand at the world basketball championship in Japan from Saturday.

He said he regretted using cannabis and would not do it again.

"I realise I made a mistake. I regretted it a lot. There is nothing really you can do when you get in a situation and you admit to it. I mean what can I do," he told today's Otago Daily Times.

"You have to stand up and say 'I did it' and hopefully there is light at the end of the tunnel."

The veteran point guard was suspended by the Tall Blacks management for the two home games against Qatar last Friday and Sunday after testing positive for cannabis following a match against Australia in Napier last month.

He escaped further suspension from the Sports Disputes Tribunal (SDT) who issued the 29-year-old a written warning on Monday and informing him that under the World Anti-Doping Association code he would be suspended for two years if he infringed again.

Dickel told the tribunal that he had used the cannabis recreationally at a party in the United States five weeks before testing positive and yesterday denied being a habitual user.

"I've never tested positive to anything else before."

He said he had apologised to his teammates and his family.

The Tall Blacks trained in Dunedin yesterday and will leave Auckland for Japan tomorrow before their opening match against Spain on Saturday night.

DRAW

New Zealand's draw at the men's basketball world championships in Japan (all NZ times):

Aug 19: v Spain, at Hiroshima 10pm

Aug 20: v Germany, at Hiroshima 7pm

Aug 21: v Angola, at Hiroshima 4pm

Aug 23: v Japan, at Hiroshima 10pm

Aug 24: v Panama, at Hiroshima 7pm

Aug 26/27: Top-16 knockout matches at Saitama

Aug 29/30: Quarterfinals at Saitama

Sept 1: Semifinals at Saitama

Sept 3: Final at Saitama

- NZPA