Henry O'Donnell wanted to focus on a group assignment for his business degree. So the Waratahs backrower took some of his sibling's ADHD medication. Two days later, he played against the Queensland Reds in Sydney. He failed a doping test.
Now the 22-year-old is banned from rugby for 18 months.
Sports Integrity Australia found the violation was unintentional and unrelated to sport performance. But the rules are clear — you need a therapeutic use exemption. O'Donnell didn't have one.
“I’ve been tested multiple times. At the time of testing, I had no second thoughts about it, (but) three weeks later, I was notified that I had failed the doping control test,” O'Donnell said.
O'Donnell had always suspected he had ADHD but was never formally diagnosed. He thought taking the medication outside competition was fine. The problem was it was still in his system when he ran onto the field.
After the positive test, he kept training and playing — even facing the British and Irish Lions last July — while he got a proper diagnosis. A psychiatrist and psychologist confirmed he'd had ADHD since childhood. He was granted a therapeutic use exemption, but it didn't apply retroactively.
“I think the most important thing for me coming out of that (letter) was, yes, I’ve made a mistake, and I’m copping a hefty punishment for it. But more importantly to me, they acknowledged it was unintentional and taken in a context unrelated to sport, which vindicates me of cheating, which is something I’d never even think about doing.”
The hardest part was the silence. O'Donnell couldn't tell anyone what was happening while the lengthy SIA process dragged on. He couldn't visit the Waratahs to train or even hang out socially. He was alone in his garage, writing workouts on the mirror.
Meanwhile, rumours flew. “I was starting to hear some pretty ordinary rumours. A few of my really close friends knew, but on the whole, my teammates knew absolutely nothing,” he said. “I heard stuff to do with the police. I then heard doping. I heard everything.”
O'Donnell loves the structured life of a professional athlete. The ban forced him to find his own structure. “The first few weeks was probably a shock. I didn’t really know what to do with myself,” he said. “I had to work out how to keep myself busy, I’ve worked so hard, I’m probably not the most talented.”
He's now counting down the months. He can return to training in November 2027 and play again from June 2028. Rugby Australia and the Waratahs issued a statement on Saturday confirming the ban, noting the unintentional nature of the violation.
O'Donnell's ban is a cautionary tale for any athlete who thinks a quick fix for study is harmless. The rules don't bend, even for a good kid who made an honest mistake.