Drugs in sport

[barbarian]

ASADA have released quite a damning report today into drugs in sport. It seems it crosses all codes, so I decided to have a look at the report (which can be found here). Here is a paragraph that caught my eye:

Case Study 1

Prohibited substance use by sub-elite athletes

On 14 October 2010, Customs and Border Protection intercepted a package from Canada which contained ten, five milligram vials of white powder labelled GHRP-6. Subsequent inquiries by ASADA identified the addressee as a rugby union player in a state club rugby competition.

On 28 November 2010, Customs and Border Protection intercepted a package from Canada addressed to another individual from the same team. This package contained five vials of what was believed to be GHRP-6. Although it was not able to be established in the investigation, ASADA assessed it ‘as possible’ that the two individuals who had imported these substances were complicit in the importation of GHRP-6 from Canada, and that other team members of these individuals were using GHRP-6.

After an extensive investigation by ASADA, the matter was referred to the Australian Rugby Union as a potential anti-doping rule violation. The ARU subsequently imposed a four-year ban on one individual for the possession and attempted trafficking of GHRP-6, and the other individual received a two-year ban for possession of GHRP-6.

The rest of the report is fairly vague in terms of naming names/sports, but I think you would be a fool to believe that rugby will not be involved in this investigation.

Interesting times ahead.
.

 

[thierry dusautoir]

I don't know how prominent performance enhancing drugs would be in the Australian game I am positive it probably does happen but I think there would be some nations where the use is obvious and probably hushed up
See exhibit A) Removed - this is defamatory
B) Removed - this is defamatory
However i am aware or have heard the whisperings of the ARU being aware of the prominent use of recreational drugs by some top line players and even assisted in covering their tracks.

 

[Braveheart81]

I saw this thread and my first thought was that it would have made the Tahs season much better from a spectator's point of view last season.

I'm thinking human growth hormone wouldn't really have been the right thing for the job though.

 

[dave]

I think we'd be fools if we thought performance enhancing drugs didn't reach not just into rugby but into every corner of professional sport. I've long held this view which I used to also think required cheap and regrettable cynicism on my part but I now can't avoid the notion that it's just the reality.

This is from the transcript of the 4 Corners episode, "The World According to Lance",

Mr Pound cites a conversation he had with the former UCI president, Hein Verbruggen.
DICK POUND: I said 'Hein, are you, you guys have a huge problem in your sport'. He said 'what do you mean?' I said 'the doping'. 'Well', he said, 'that's really the fault of the spectators'. And I said 'I beg your pardon, it's the spectators' fault?' Well' he said, 'yes, if they were happy with the Tour de France at 25K, you know we'd be fine. But', he said, 'if they want it at 41 and 42', he said, 'the riders have to prepare'. And I just shook my head and said 'well, you heard it here first, you got a big problem'.

While I wouldn't go so far as to blame the spectators, I think there is some regrettable truth in there. Bigger, faster, stronger is not just the desire of the spectators, but of the players too.
PEDs must be an almost irresistible draw when those around you are seemingly these bigger, faster, stronger types and all you'll need are a few injections to get you there. (ok, perhaps more that a few)
I also think, further down the line of course, that the discovery of athletes taking PEDs won't be the scandal that it now is. Especially when the appearance is that everybody is involved. And while I don't want to see the team that has the best scientists win I also can't avoid the notion that this is all just delaying the inevitable. Again, possibly a cynical attitude on my part, but as long as there is fame, money and ego in sport - and there are a lot of all three - PEDs will always be a part of sport, always.

 

[meatsack]

During the ACC press conference I thought Pulver looked the least shaken. Well at least a tie between him and the Cricket Australia bloke. He mentioned the ARU had already set up an Integrity Unit (a measure recommended in the report) and that it had caught 4 people already, 2 I assume are mentioned in the case study above.

Was following the #drugsinsport hashtag on twitter and this one came up:

I hope the Waratahs weren't involved in the#drugsinsport thing. if so they have the Andrew Wakefield of sports scientists working for them

https://twitter.com/whereisdaz/status/299334899893141504

I don't even know what he's implying there, but sounds libellous.

 

[barbarian]

As the NSW Horrortahs parody twitter account astutely pointed out, the Waratahs 2012 table position would clearly indicate that they had nothing to do with performance-enhancing drugs.......

 

[lily]

I know of several Shute Shield players who regularly use recreational drugs. I'd imagine this would also be the case in colts. That's just a reflection of the society we live in. Young men are risk takers and this behaviour is seen by many as an acceptable risk and a victimless crime.

 

[Slim 293]

As the NSW Horrortahs parody twitter account astutely pointed out, the Waratahs 2012 table position would clearly indicate that they had nothing to do with performance-enhancing drugs...

Just salary cap rorting........

 

[Braveheart81]

I know of several Shute Shield players who regularly use recreational drugs. I'd imagine this would also be the case in colts. That's just a reflection of the society we live in. Young men are risk takers and this behaviour is seen by many as an acceptable risk and a victimless crime.

I would guess that recreational drug use is prominent amongst professional sportsman in all codes as well.

Recreational drug use is prominent amongst young people of all demographics in Australia.

There's no real reason to think that a group of young sportspeople are any different from another group of young people in the country. Particularly when they have lots of disposable income and plenty of time off, particularly in the offseason.

I wouldn't even say it's due to young men engaging in risk taking behaviour. Many view it as a similar activity to going out drinking, albeit an illegal one. Most of them would view the risk they are engaging in being the risk of being caught, not the risk of actually taking drugs.

 

[Braveheart81]

Just salary cap rorting....

Instead of rorting the salary cap and trying to hide it under 'ground hire', the 2012 Waratahs probably hired a whole lot of rugby grounds they weren't actually using then tried to hide the embarrassment away under player salaries.

 

[Antony]

I think there would be some nations where the use is obvious and probably hushed up
See exhibit A) Removed - defamatory
B) Removed - defamatory

Not really sure what you're getting at here. Are you saying you think those players are dopers?

 

[spikhaza]

NSW Horrotahs ‏@NSW_Horrotahs
Shocking news about the ACC's investigation into drugs in sport. Clearly, as last year's results suggest, there is no way we're involved.

 

[Slim 293]

Not really sure what you're getting at here. Are you saying you think those players are dopers?

I don't know if Thierry is just trying to enrage our Saffa brethren with those names (who shall now be nameless for obvious reasons)?

 

[matty_k]

During the ACC press conference I thought Pulver looked the least shaken. Well at least a tie between him and the Cricket Australia bloke. He mentioned the ARU had already set up an Integrity Unit (a measure recommended in the report) and that it had caught 4 people already, 2 I assume are mentioned in the case study above.

Was following the #drugsinsport hashtag on twitter and this one came up:

I hope the Waratahs weren't involved in the#drugsinsport thing. if so they have the Andrew Wakefield of sports scientists working for them

https://twitter.com/whereisdaz/status/299334899893141504

I don't even know what he's implying there, but sounds libellous.

Andrew Wakefield is the guy who falsified data in relation to a study linking the MMR vaccine to Autism. So i'm assuming they are saying that their drug guy (if there was one) was doing it wrong.

 

[thierry dusautoir]

Not really sure what you're getting at here. Are you saying you think those players are dopers? .

I speculate on the first two but they got awfully big awfully fast.

The other two where caught but got off
Speculation, which is not acceptable as "fact", so don't post it - Cyclo.

 

[daz]

I don't know how prominent performance enhancing drugs would be in the Australian game I am positive it probably does happen but I think there would be some nations where the use is obvious and probably hushed up

However i am aware or have heard the whisperings of the ARU being aware of the prominent use of recreational drugs by some top line players and even assisted in covering their tracks.

Guys, my gut feel is that specifically naming players in this thread is probably not a good idea, joking or not.

Too easy to take it the wrong way, so can I suggest we cease naming anyone unless proven guilty?

 

[Rob42]

What's the relationship between this report being released a couple of days after our southern brethren freaking out about Essendon's use of supplements?

At this stage, it all seems a bit bizarre, the amount of attention it has gained. Essentially the story is: "Sportspeople at all levels are now using much more advanced performance-enhancing drugs. We're investigating, but can't tell you any more." Greta for a bit of hype coming into the new footy season, but really not much of a story so far.

The story in the Daily Telegraph names the four rugby players already banned for using these products.

 

[D-Box]

Here is the short statement attributed to ARU

The ARU "confident" in its anti-doping measures but would be "naive" to think it is fully in the clear. from here

 

[Braveheart81]

The reality is that if people want to be drug cheats they are going to get away with it in most cases.

The only really succesful method for eliminating drug cheats is the biological passport now used in cycling. It is all about creating a baseline for a specific athlete and testing them frequently and comparing every result against the previous results and monitoring changes. This sort of system is incredibly costly and onerous and is unlikely to be used in any other sports unless they reach a point where the sport is so damaged from performance enhancing drug scandals that it is considered the only way forward.

 

[Richo]

I think this is an issue that we'll be talking about a lot over the next few years. It hasn't really had the same impact here as in the US, not yet anyway, but it's possible it will.Welcome to the Post-Lance world.

Here's an interesting article on it, particularly looking at it from the perspective of why these issues aren't more readily discussed.

Personally, I think the ethical issues here are quite complex, as are the practical ones. It's easy to say "cheating is cheating" but we already allow a whole range of medical treatments that aren't all that different from using HGH or whatever. Where does the line get drawn? And why? Is injury recovery, which might be sped up by PEDs, a special area?