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Comment by haunter | Hacker News Reader

Where does cocaine enter the picture? He was using it from the very beginning of his playing career. Got suspended 3 times by anti-doping agencies (most famously in 1994 at the World Cup)

   At 27 years old in 1988, and at the very height of his abilities and fame, the Napoli playmaker would lower himself to the following “physical programme”.

   Sunday: Serie A match.

   Sunday night to Wednesday morning: continuous cocaine binge.

   Wednesday morning to Saturday evening: “cleanse”, and sweat it all out.

   Sunday: Serie A match.

https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/news/diego-mara...

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The 1994 World Cup positive doping was ephedrine, not cocaine.

Did that "programme" improve or worsen his performance, though? Unless he was able to train harder perhaps.

Kusturica made a documentary about him where he said (or implied) he would have been a better player if he wasn't taking cocaine https://www.besoccer.com/new/do-you-know-what-player-i-would...

I just don't understand how cocaine doesn't make you a better person altogether.

today my friend you won the internet

Cocaine makes you the BEST person, way better than everybody else.

That cocaine regimen implies there's some sort of multiday benefit to cocaine. Whereas it would make sense than any benefits from the drug would be from contemporaneous consumption during a match...

>Where does cocaine enter the picture? He was using it from the very beginning of his playing career. Got suspended 3 times by anti-doping agencies (most famously in 1994 at the World Cup)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_4bp8bBNVw

sounds like all that stuff would have made him a worse player.

Indeed, Maradona career was hurt by his drug addiction.

I wanted to check this because my memory was that while he did self-sabotage in various ways, I did remember him having long enough career that was largely quite successful. So his time in Europe finished in 1993 (aged 33) with a relatively unsuccessful period at Sevilla (26 games, 5 goals) - which is as I thought. But I had NO memory of him playing four more years until 1997, and at Newell's and Boca no less! Incredible.

That said his affinity for cocaine, alcohol and partying in general undoubtedly blunted and stunted his career, which is mindblowing considering the success he had. What a player.

I'm old enough to have seen playing live at the stadium Zico, Platini and Maradona. They were all excellent players, but of course Dieguito was out of this world. Unfortunately his inner weakness turned him into a victim of the sharks that very often approach young successful sportsmen in order to bring them into their shitty corrupt world luring them with parties, luxury homes, fast cars and lots of girls.

Wow seeing him live must have been something, not least beside Zico and Platini! The closest I got to him was watching him manage Argentina vs Scotland in a friendly @ Hampden (they won 1-0), but he's a very popular figure in Scotland so it was almost like a home game.

I suspect that if you come from a poor, vulnerable ubringing and you're thrust suddenly into this world of plenty and wealth where you are basically a god then you're going to fly off the rails somehow. It's happened quite a few times by now.

Amazing information. Thanks for this!

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