Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Would You Dope If You Could?
Posted by John Branston on Tue, Nov 17, 2009 at 11:41 AM
As one of the PGA's attorneys said in court last week, professional athletes are held to high standards for the integrity of the game.
"When you become a professional athlete you don't always get to do everything the man on the street gets to do," said Rich Young, a lawyer in Colorado Springs who has worked on the Floyd Landis case and other major doping suspensions.
If, as a weekend warrior, you could take drugs to boost your strength, speed your recovery, improve your time, or calm your nerves, would you do it? I'm not so sure.
In 60 years, I've never taken artificial testosterone or had my testosterone level checked and, as far as I know, I don't know anyone who has, although it might be something you don't talk openly about. But I'm a hacker who's never had the opportunity. The only time I remember taking steroids was for poison ivy.
If someone told me a legal drug would give me an edge and an extra step, I might take it. A lot of games and matches are decided by a few points over the course of an hour. In racquet sports, getting to the ball is the hardest thing about getting old. In golf, nerves are the enemy of anyone who ever stood over the dreaded right-to-left four-foot putt. For runners, the spirit is willing but the joints and stamina may not be. For swimmers, winning and losing is measured in fractions of a second. What if you could change that with a series of shots or pills — or a new kind of body-streamlining swimsuit? (I've read that the answer to that last one is a resounding "I want it.")
Of course with drugs there's the matter of side effects. The glib answer is, "hey, my hair is falling out anyway." I know there are potentially more serious consequences. But not playing, or losing regularly, or being sore all the time are serious consequences too.
It's easy to condemn Manny Ramirez and Floyd Landis and Sammy Sosa. But is it cheating if a shot of juice gives you a win in your weekly game at the club? Or lets you compete and place in your age group in the Memphis marathon next month?
I bet the top finishers and most of the 15,000 people who will run the streets of Memphis drug free would say it is. So do you think random testing would turn up anything harder than cortisone or ibuprofen?
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38103: depends if it's performance enhancing.
I think Doug Barron got a raw deal in the court's ruling (denying him the injunction he needed to go to Q School). But, I would expect no less from a federal court that more often than not rules in favor of business interests over the little guy.
Re Doug Barron, Judge Pham called it "a close case." As he noted though, the testosterone violation was pretty cut and dried. Positive test for either drug meant a suspension. Sorry, no link to ruling. Summary on City Beat.
Until you walk in a man's shoes that cannot produce enough hormone to feel like a man you have no clue. I hope someone will come forward to aid these men in their time of need. Ask a female close to you going through menapause what it's like? Men suffer from many of the same symptoms if not worse, however, for them to be treated they have to endure this type of stereo typing, as "dopers," because the only hormone they need is testosterone. It doesn't have to be given like a body builder; just replace what is naturally lost so they feel human again.
The endocronologists and cardiologists on the PGA doping appeals boards most surely do have a clue. The notion that professional athletes who take banned drugs are misunderstood victims and handicapped under ADA is rubbish. "menapause"?
People dope all the time to enhance their performance, whether sexually or socially or psychologically.
I don't have an issue with it, but I think it should be regulated in competitive sports, to stop people from turning themselves into monsters. Notice I say regulated, not banned.
Luckily I've never had the need to take steroids BUt I think they should stay banned. My reason comes down to genetics. If a man produces enough testosterone that he can be a world class powerlifter, more than likely his body is suited for it. Meanwhile the guy who juices up more than likely was made to be a skinny beanpole. The thing is after the 'roids, he's a beefed up berseker with breasts.
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