Drugs in Sports - A Primer

By Ken Parker, RunnersWeb.com

Draw a straight line between the podium and the lab.

Once upon a time, athletes determined who would go higher and faster - now it's in the hands of scientists. In today's sporting context, "doping" refers to athletes using banned substances or methods to enhance performance. The term first appeared in an English dictionary in 1879, but drugs have managed to wend their way through sports history.

100 AD
Chariot racers fed their horses a potent mixture to make them run faster, and many gladiators were doped-up to make their fights sufficiently vigourous for the blood-thirsty paying public.

1886
The first recorded drug-induced death occurred when cyclist Linton died from an overdose of trimethyl.

1904
The first near-death in modern Olympics occurred when marathon runner Thomas Hicks used a mixture of brandy and strychnine.

No specific date
Most drugs involved alcohol and strychnine. Caffeine, heroin and cocaine were also widely used until the latter two became available only by prescription.

1930s
Amphetamines were produced and quickly became the athlete's choice over strychnine.

1950s
The Soviet team used male hormones to increase power and strength, and the Americans developed steroids in response.

1952
One of the first noticeable doping cases involving amphetamines occurred at the Winter Olympics. Several speed skaters became ill and needed medical attention. Drug use was reportedly rife at the 1952 Helsinki Games, and to a lesser extent at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics.

1960
At the Olympics, Danish cyclist Kurt Jensen collapsed and died from an amphetamine overdose.

1967
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) took action when Tommy Simpson died during the Tour de France from taking illegal amphetamines.

1968
The IOC arrived at a definition for "doping" and developed a banned list of substances. Testing began at the Olympic games.

1976
The German Democratic Republic (GDR) shocks the world with its performance at the Montreal Olympic Games. History shows that doping was endemic within the GDR sports system -- steroids and other drugs were provided to athletes as young as 11 years old. It resulted in long-term medical and psychological problems and occasional premature death. East German shotput champion Heidi Krieger eventually changed sexes to become Andreas Krieger. No GDR athletes ever tested positive at any international competitions.

1988
At the Seoul Olympics, Ben Johnson tested positive for a banned anabolic steroid, and was stripped of his gold medal and suspended for two years.

2003
The use of the steroid TGH is discovered and several high-profile athletes test positive. A cyclist admits that he used the performance-enhancing drug erythropoietin (EPO) and suggests up to 90 percent of cyclists also use it.

So crime doesn't pay? Read on.

A look at the future is even more depressing.

University of Pennsylvania researchers have used gene therapy on mice to produce increased levels of a protein that promotes muscle growth and repair. The mice show greater than normal muscle size and strength, and do not lose it as they age. Rats altered in the same fashion and then put into physical training have experienced 35 percent more strength and do not lost any of it "detraining," as humans do when they abandon exercise. Officials admit that they have received numerous communications from coaches and athletes about this program.

One of the major issues with eradicating the use of drugs in sports has been the system itself - the athletes, coaches and officials. Ben Johnson's coach, Charlie Francis, was on the payroll of the Canadian Athletics Federation while he directed a major doping program with his athletes. The federation looked the other way because, in the words of one senior official, "We need Ben."

Canadian officials have continually set qualification standards based on international rankings set by athletes from countries that tolerate - and encourage - drug use. What kind of signal is this to give to our athletes?

Doctors who worked at the Los Angeles Olympics later testified they were aware of drug cover-ups by Olympic officials. It is questionable whether the IOC would have announced Ben Johnson's positive test if a Korean newspaper had not already broken the story.

The United States Track and Field Association (USATF) is currently involved in a major dispute with the IOC over their handling of drug testing of American athletes. At the 1984 Los Angeles games, the U.S. Cycling Association decided to try blood doping as a way to get an advantage on the competition. The results were a huge success. The team brought home a U.S. cycling team record nine medals.

Dr. Charles Yesalis is an epidemiologist at The Pennsylvania State University and one of America's foremost experts on performance-enhancing substances in sports. He has spent 25 years as a primary sports doping researcher. Although he's losing faith that doping can be solved, he favours funding urinalysis testing to "substantially close" the loopholes.

"And if that doesn't work, the hell with it," he says. "The guy or gal with the best chemist wins."

This article appeared originally in Ottawa Outdoors magazine.