Rob's Blog » Sports Medicine

A New Drug

Rob Wood — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 06:39:54 +0000

When any athlete beats their opposition by a large margin at the international level, there are always suspicions that an artificial aid has been used. I have always thought that when something is too good to be true, it often is. At the Olympic Games there were two athletes that dominated the opposition and surprised many: Bolt and Phelps. Why has the questions not been asked? As in many of these cases, time will tell, and then people may be saying ‘why did we not see it? It was right in front of my eyes”.

Related Pages: Doping in Sports, Michael Phelps Profile,

Lance Armstrong Returns from the Dead

Rob Wood — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 06:33:23 +0000

Like Jesus, Lance Armstrong is set to rise again. The champion seven time winner of the Tour de France, he made a comeback from testicular cancer. After he retired from cycling, he tried resurrecting his sporting career as a marathon runner. He completed a few races over the last few years, though not spectacularly. He has now set his comeback on the bike for the Australian Tour Down Under early next year. At 36 years of age, can we expect him to perform as he has shown he can in the past? This is a time that can catch out an athlete, with the pressure to perform in an aging body, he may be drawn back to the world of drug taking to prime his body for the exertions of professional cycling. Don’t slip up Lance, as all the accolades from your successful career can be permanently tainted from a positive doping test.

Related Pages: Tour de France, cycling, Lance Armstrong profile

Marion Jones – Catch me if you can

Rob Wood — Sun, 07 Oct 2007 10:58:01 +0000

Marion Jones has found out that no matter how fast you are, you cannot run away from the truth. In hardly a surprise for many people, USA Sprinter Marion Jones admitted yesterday that she was a drug cheat. She had taken the designer steroid THG, which was also known as “the clear” by the BALCO laboratory. She had vehemently denied any wrong doing for a long time, under mounting evidence. I don’t know how she had remained clear for so long. Even the head of Balco, Victor Conte, who has repeatedly and publicly accused Jones of using drugs, was her personal “nutritionist” at the Sydney Olympics. Now and rightly so her reputation is in tatters, and she is apparently broke. She will lose many of her records and the medals she won at the Sydney Olympic Games. I have no sympathy for her. It makes me angry that I have to give these athletes the benefit of the doubt, when all the anecdotal evidence and rumours paint a dirty picture, but unfortunately the drug tests have failed to find any evidence, and they deny all the allegations. It make me think of the saying that “When something is too good to be true, it probably is”. When I watched her sprint away from the rest of the field in the 2000 Sydney Olympics 100 metre sprint, my first thought was that in such a competitive event that someone cannot be that much better than the next best sprinter in the world. And now it is shown that no one was, naturally. Even the second placegetter has subsequently been done for drugs, and who knows which other athletes in that field also had artificial enhancement. As I have said before, it is hard to enjoy watching some sports when my first thought is always whether the winner had taken drugs to get there. This applies at the least to cycling, track and field, and weight lifting.

Drug Tests for Golfers

Rob Wood — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 22:22:28 +0000

Can golfers benefit from taking illicit drugs? One the surface many people would not believe that it could make much difference. Golf is a game of skill, and by the look of many golfers physical fitness is not a great factor. However, Tiger Woods, the best golfer at the moment and maybe the best ever, has led the way with his high level of fitness. Many young players may see that by artificially increasing their own fitness some of the riches of golf may be available to them.

There are a few areas in which some artificial enhancement could have an effect. Anabolic steroids can provide an advantage by increasing muscle strength. The stronger you are, the more acceleration you can generate in your swing and the further you can hit the ball. When you reach the putting green, another substance could be of assistance. Beta blockers can help the player relax or reduce tremors, and enable more control with your putting.

There has been talk of instigating drug testing for elite golfers. They should stop talking about it and do it now, as most major sports of the world already do. There does not need to be a major scandal for them to take action, which will only harm the sport. Putting a testing procedure in place will show the world that they are serious about the problem of drugs in sport, and show that all sports not immune to it.

Related Pages: golf, doping in sports, Tiger Woods profile

Was Thorpe drug assisted?

Rob Wood — Fri, 30 Mar 2007 23:25:03 +0000

Australian swimmer Ian Thorpe is arguably one of the greatest swimmers the world has ever seen. In November last year he announced his retirement from swimming after 10 years on the Australian team, citing that he has lost the desire. Today the news is that just prior to his announcement he may have tested positive for testosterone, and this has made people think that it may be related. French newspaper L’Equipe has reported that he showed abnormally high readings for testosterone and luteinizing hormone in 2006, and international swimming body FINA has appealed for a fresh investigation into that test. This could be a big reality check for swimming fans who think that the sport is clean. Everyone is human, and even â€œsqueaky cleanâ€ Ian Thorpe could possibly succumb to the pressures to perform. We are yet to hear all the details, but hopefully such reports will keep both the drug testers and drug cheats on their toes and continue the cleaning up of drug use in sports.

Related Pages: Ian Thorpe, Swimming

Performance Enhanced Cricket

Rob Wood — Thu, 19 Oct 2006 21:25:44 +0000

Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif, Pakistan’s premier fast bowlers, were found recently to have the muscle building steroid Nandrolone in their system after a random drug test by the Pakistan Cricket Board. Cricket is not just a gentleman’s game anymore – it is serious business. No sport at the elite level is immune to drug controversy. This is not the first instance of drug taking in cricket, though it is probably the biggest and worst. There have been several cases of marijuana use being highlighted, though the biggest previous story concerned Shane Warne, one of the greatest players of all time, who was suspended for a year after his mum gave him a diuretic so that he could look good in front of the cameras. Let’s hope that if proven guilty that these Pakistani’s get the punishment they deserve. We don’t want the beautiful game of cricket being tainted with drugs like many other sports.

Related Pages: cricket, Shane Warne profile, doping in sports

More Dopes

Rob Wood — Thu, 24 Aug 2006 00:29:43 +0000

Does the drug nightmare for sports ever end? Track and field are having their turn at the moment. World and Olympic 100 meters champion Justin Gatlin admitted failing a drugs test in April, and has just been given an eight year ban, though this may change over time. The world record for the 100 meters of 9.77 seconds that he shared with Asafa Powell has been taken off him. The harsh penalty follows his previous positive for an amphetamine at the 2001 US Junior Championships. Also in the news is five-time Olympic medallist Marion Jones, who has been linked to doping in the past, and recently gave a positive result for EPO. Her second sample has yet to be tested, but her reputation must now surely be tainted. All this in the wake of the other high profile USA athlete found to be doping, cyclist Floyd Landis, who tested positive for elevated testosterone during the Tour de France. As talked about previously, the answer to this problem of drugs in sport does not seem apparent. Hopefully as more high profile athletes are found to be cheating, this will deter others from doing so. What happened to the old adage of just playing fair? Maybe one day that will return. In the meantime, I hope the scientists continue to fight and catch the cheats so I can again truly enjoy watching sport.