Doping Cases: New Era of Olympic Testing
Doping Cases: New Era of Olympic Testing
New Anti-Doping Standards Already Creating a Stir at Athens Olympics
Aug. 9, 2004 -- Before the torch is lit or the first athlete hits the field, new anti-doping regulations are already threatening to take some of the luster away from the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens.
But experts say the publicity surrounding recent doping scandals involving athletes using designer steroids like THG or other banned substances should instead be taken as a sign that officials are serious about eliminating athletes who use performance-enhancing drugs from competition.
"Expect more of these cases, not because that's reflective that the whole world is rotten, but rather that we are now doing the proper job of identifying the minority of athletes who are offenders in this area," says Andrew L. Pipe, MD, who is on his way to Athens as medical advisor to the International Basketball Federation.
The 2004 summer games are also the first Olympics to take place since the new worldwide anti-doping code was adopted by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and since the creation of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.
"It has been said that terrorism and doping are the greatest threats to the Olympic games and the Olympic movement as we know them," says WADA member Gary I. Wadler, MD. "While efforts to prevent acts of terrorism are unprecedented, so too have been the international efforts over the past five years to eradicate doping."
Wadler and Pipe discussed the impact of recent doping scandals on the upcoming Olympics during a recent news teleconference organized by the American College of Sports Medicine.
Experts say the vast majority of the more than 10,000 athletes competing in Athens are clean and do not engage in doping. But they also acknowledge that doping and the use of banned substances is clearly a problem among a minority of athletes, including Americans.
"This is a widespread, global problem, and, yes, the United States needed to and has taken aggressive steps to put its house in order," says Wadler. "I don't think that the issue is who has a bigger problem but what are we doing to deal with all those countries that have a problem."
Doping Cases Mark New Era of Olympic Testing
New Anti-Doping Standards Already Creating a Stir at Athens Olympics
Aug. 9, 2004 -- Before the torch is lit or the first athlete hits the field, new anti-doping regulations are already threatening to take some of the luster away from the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens.
But experts say the publicity surrounding recent doping scandals involving athletes using designer steroids like THG or other banned substances should instead be taken as a sign that officials are serious about eliminating athletes who use performance-enhancing drugs from competition.
"Expect more of these cases, not because that's reflective that the whole world is rotten, but rather that we are now doing the proper job of identifying the minority of athletes who are offenders in this area," says Andrew L. Pipe, MD, who is on his way to Athens as medical advisor to the International Basketball Federation.
The 2004 summer games are also the first Olympics to take place since the new worldwide anti-doping code was adopted by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and since the creation of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.
"It has been said that terrorism and doping are the greatest threats to the Olympic games and the Olympic movement as we know them," says WADA member Gary I. Wadler, MD. "While efforts to prevent acts of terrorism are unprecedented, so too have been the international efforts over the past five years to eradicate doping."
Wadler and Pipe discussed the impact of recent doping scandals on the upcoming Olympics during a recent news teleconference organized by the American College of Sports Medicine.
New Anti-Doping Measures in Effect in Athens
Experts say the vast majority of the more than 10,000 athletes competing in Athens are clean and do not engage in doping. But they also acknowledge that doping and the use of banned substances is clearly a problem among a minority of athletes, including Americans.
"This is a widespread, global problem, and, yes, the United States needed to and has taken aggressive steps to put its house in order," says Wadler. "I don't think that the issue is who has a bigger problem but what are we doing to deal with all those countries that have a problem."
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