Getting an edge over the competition has always been around… just ask the ancient Greeks, competitors chewed on animal testicles to extract natural testosterone. Poisons acting like stimulants were used in the early Olympic games and the Nobel Prize was won for the discovery of steroids in the 1930’s. The 60’s through the mid-90’s saw the growth and widespread open use of steroids until testing methods became more sophisticated, but then, so did the cheaters. Once testing became better, better ‘masking agents’ were found to fool the testers.
I always wondered about some athletes who performed fantastically on their domestic stage but dropped significantly in the Olympics or the world stage. Was the testing apparently better?
For those who remember those early times may recall the American weight lifter who said that he would beat his famous Russian competitor once he could afford the Russian’s drug bill. The eastern block was not just increasing their athletes strength through the addition of steroids, but they took it once step further, they added substances to raise the natural testosterone manufacturing ability of the body.
Some places never seem to change, governing bodies still apparently ignore what’s going on in Cuba and the Carribean.
Unfortunately we have little but anecdotal evidence as to the long term effects of athletic drug use, but it doesn’t look good. Former world class male athletes are replacing about everything in their bodies from joints to organs. And many women appear to have compromised their fertility for a what amounts to a couple of lines in the newspaper.
We also no longer have a level playing field.
Don’t get me wrong, I am not advocating a return to those unfettered years of wild steroid consumption… but the future’s athletes will belong to expensive gene doping labs. I look for big things at the Chinese Games. However, it is always interesting to see hard working and more talented ‘clean’ athletes passed up in college by those with an ‘edge.’
So, don’t cry for Marion Jones, she got more than most. Many drug using athletes are paying the price with far less accolades and without any medical supervision. Besides, I have read that the USADA has only banned Marion for 2 years…. she’ll be back.
Roger Freberg
By the way, if you’re an athlete taking drugs… just shut up… don’t sign up as some sort of ‘clean’ spokesman. It just looks worse when you’re caught.
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