Drug users in sports

Today a story about bycicling's Floyd Landis http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/cycling/n ... id=5203604 is another blow to having any faith in athletes who test positive for drugs. Like Floyd, they deny wrong doing with varying degrees of success in getting away with it. Anyone with an once of integrity will be haunted by lies, as was Floyd. Now he comes clean to ease his concience, but not before wasting court and our time in trying to convince everuyone he is innocent. Then he rats on the rest of them out there whom he knows or suspects of doping. This ought to result in some very interesting fall out. Given his past associations, look for it to strike close to home. I expect Lance will come under increased scrutiny. The fact that Loyd got away with it though tridks, makes me believe many more are doing the same thing.

His story in particular was one where I wanted to belive in his innocense and his current revelations are a huge blow to ever giving any athlete who becomes associated with doping the benefit of the doubt. They are big-time cheaters who managed to slip through past the doping guards min place. It leaves me greatly saddened and am for having their drug-enhanced performances stricken from the record books.

I always wonder if the motivation is to write a book. Agreed that it makes me both angry and sad. I hope it's not true about Armstrong but I sure wouldn't bet against it

Thing I never understood was: You choose to use drugs to enance your performance (or that of your horse), you win and you get the prize.

Okay then. But in the end, is the money really worth the loss of self esteem, integrity and pride in having done the very best you could? And that's not even counting the damage done to the body of the athlete--the irreversible damage to vital organs, and shortened lifespan.

Really, what I think they ought to do is let the human athletes who choose to juice and drug have their own competitions w/o any drug testing. Give them a fair playing field. I'll bet that after the early death trend is observed, there might be a change in the whole attitude!

Great idea , I wonder which competitions would win the ratings war

Me, I'd watch the druggies. Sex and Death sell ya know! It's like watching NASCAR waiting for the crash.......
And then I'd watch the straights.

LopingAlong wrote: Me, I'd watch the druggies. Sex and Death sell ya know! It's like watching NASCAR waiting for the crash.......
And then I'd watch the straights.

Me too! Whats that say about us! LOL

Drugs in sports has been forever, the history of drugs and sports goes way back. Now, those who use them (drugs), are trying to be sneaky about it. When I played ball, injections of pain killers was the rage, and some new drugs with sugars that enhanced performance were being used. Its rare to see a natural gifted athlete these days, most get spoiled by drugs and bad coaches....JMHO

DrMike wrote: Drugs in sports has been forever, the history of drugs and sports goes way back. Now, those who use them (drugs), are trying to be sneaky about it. When I played ball, injections of pain killers was the rage, and some new drugs with sugars that enhanced performance were being used. Its rare to see a natural gifted athlete these days, most get spoiled by drugs and bad coaches....JMHO

And the same is true in the horse industry--why I left the show arena after going to the Olympic Trials when I was 16. And horse racing? Yikes! It is a monetary driven agenda with little regard to consequences to the athlete; whether they have two legs or four. I think it comes down to the willingness to cheat. Figure that out and yowza!

As you said before, LopingAlong, level the playing field. Make drug use legal in sports and let athletes decide what is more important to them, good health (as much as playing sports will allow) or the ultimate "winning is everything" damned be my health. I really see no other way. I've thought about a divisions of drug enhanced vs drug free sports performances and do not think it would work. The drive to be the best and failure to acknowledge someone else is simply better than you is likely to lead drug-strays who can't compete on a level drug induced field back to a less competitive forum where they can dominate.

I suppose the 4 legged competition you refer to is no different, but one I know little about.

I also had no idea about the early phases of drug use in sports. Perhaps you could give us a little more insight into that too, DrMike.

All this begs the question why winning is so damn important at all costs? Is this an genetic trait or outgrowth of social evolution?

I know in the horse business, they've been drugging show horses and race horses ever since I showed as a little girl.

I think it's both genetically inherent and social evolution. We are programmed to win to survive and that is encouraged from the time we play our first tee-ball game. Or before, really.