Dr. Anthony Galea, a renowned sports medicine specialist, was arrested on Oct. 15 by Canadian police three weeks after an unnamed assistant was caught crossing the border between Canada and the United States with a medical bag containing Actovegin, a drug made from calf’s blood, and Human growth hormone. Actovegin is illegal in the United States and not for sale in Canada — though a doctor can prescribe it there. Human growth hormone is highly regulated in the United States, but legal in Canada.

According to the Times, Galea treated Woods four times last February because he was struggling to recover from a serious knee injury suffered in the summer of 2008. Galea has developed a blood-spinning technique known as platelet-rich plasma therapy that aids post-surgery rehabilitation. Galea was allegedly part of Woods’ rehabilitation team put together by his representatives at International Management Group, which strongly denounced the Times’ story in an e-mail to the Associated Press on Tuesday.

“No one at IMG has ever met or recommended Dr. Galea, nor were we worried about the progress of Tiger’s recovery, as the Times falsely reported,” wrote Woods’ agent Mark Steinberg. “The treatment Tiger received is a widely accepted therapy and to suggest some connection with illegality is recklessly irresponsible.”

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police say that no charges have been filed yet against Galea and that he has a court date Friday in Toronto. According to the Times — quoting anonymous sources — the FBI has opened its own criminal investigation to determine if Galea provided performance-enhancing drugs to athletes.

The PGA Tour did not have a drug policy in place until July 1, 2008 when it announced one at Woods’ own tournament — the annual AT&T National played at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda. That move came as performance-enhancing drug allegations roiled other professional sports leagues, especially Major League Baseball. The Tour’s banned substance list includes HGH, steroids, testosterone, blood doping, masking agents, specific stimulants and recreational drugs like opiates and marijuana.

So far only one tour golfer — a journeyman named Doug Barron — has been suspended for performance-enhancing drugs. Barron was banned for one year after testing positive for testosterone and propranolol, a beta-blocker that slows the heart rate. The Tour admitted in court proceedings last month that Barron is not necessarily the first player to test positive, only the first to be suspended. The organization is not required to disclose positive tests or punishments to the public. Barron is contesting his suspension.

Woods has taken an indefinite leave of absence from the PGA Tour to repair his marriage to his wife, Elin, and rebuild his tattered image after weeks of scandal surrounding his alleged affairs.

bmcnally@washingtonexaminer.com