who else thinks the testing of athletes for recreational drug use is pointless?
wasnt alcohol banned for triathlon at some point?
i don’t know if it’s pointless, but I think it’s probably cost prohibitive.
All NCAA athletes get tested. At least at my school we could count on 1 per year, more if you had a problem like a dui or positive test, got caught smoking or arrested etc. We had a female disappear from our XC team the day drug testing was announced. Later found out she was a pot head. So it probably discourages some use but doesn’t eliminate it.
"wasnt alcohol banned for triathlon at some point? "
Can’t imagine having a few cold ones before the start of the race or at T1 or T2. I’ll save that for the end.
I read the guy that won the first IM Hawaii had a few beers on the run because his support crew(you had to bring your own in those days) ran out of water.
why should we care about what recreational activities top athletes get up to?
Disagree here. Top athletes, whether they like it or not, are role models to the wider community. Whether in or out of season they are still in the public eye. Many (granted not all) get paid an absolute fortune for doing something they love and many love the spotlight that goes with it. I’ve got no sympathy for those thaty b!tch that it’s their private life and they can do what they want. They chose to pursue something that many would kill for. Let them go back to a deadbeat 9 - 5 job and do their drugs if they want to hide it.
It sounds like maybe your issue is more with the fact that non-performance-enhancing drugs are on the banned list, yes?
"wasnt alcohol banned for triathlon at some point? "
Can’t imagine having a few cold ones before the start of the race or at T1 or T2. I’ll save that for the end. "
You’re joking, but here in Japan there is often a pre-race party the day before. The amount of alcohol and shellfish these guys put away before a race would stop me dead!
I had my best ever time on a sprint tri when I went out the night before and listened to a jazz band in a pub over a few pints. Usually I went to bed early and don’t have any alcohol a couple of days before.
What’s always shocked me are the folks that light up a smoke after finishing a tri. Seen that a couple of times.
I’m with you on this one, fulla. People get all riled up about some athlete’s or actor’s private life. I don’t understand it.
role models to the wider community???
if the wider community doesnt know how does it affect them?
Top athletes, whether they like it or not, are role models to the wider community.
Lots of people are role models to the wider community: Celebs (including Rock Stars), Politicians, Academics, Teachers, Firefighters, Police, Lawyers, Mime Artists, Babysitters, Doctors, Environmental Workers, Volunteer Carers and last but by no means least -Parents.
We can’t justify testing athletes for recreational drugs because they are role models, without testing everybody else.
“why should we care about what recreational activities top athletes get up to?”
Because many people are paying good money for a shot at winning a race, and if someone is taking illegal substances to enhance their performance, then the average racer isn’t getting what they paid for,…namely, a fair race.
Fulla’s not talking about performance enhancing drugs.
Disagree here. Top athletes, whether they like it or not, are role models to the wider community. Whether in or out of season they are still in the public eye. Many (granted not all) get paid an absolute fortune for doing something they love and many love the spotlight that goes with it. I’ve got no sympathy for those thaty b!tch that it’s their private life and they can do what they want. They chose to pursue something that many would kill for. Let them go back to a deadbeat 9 - 5 job and do their drugs if they want to hide it.
Considering the number of parents that use drugs in front of their kids these days worrying about a few athlete pot heads is somewhat misguided. Parents have far more influence than many of them seem to realize.
I don’t know if it’s pointless… probably is.
I think we’d have to take a look at indirect performance enhancement before making a definitive call. Perhaps the rec drugs allow the individual to escape the stress and worry that inevitably happen in the lead-up to a big event. I’m sure it’s a stretch for some people to understand that but when I was diving, there was a 3 month period before NCAA’s that I’d be half-sick from the intensity of preparation. Constantly working on the mental game. A break from that would probably have helped me relax and perform a bit better, maybe not, I’ll never know.
But, at least in college, them’s the rules. If you don’t like them, find a different game… I was awarded a national championship because the one guy who beat me was DQ’d for failing a drug test. They never release the substance involved but it probably wasn’t steroids and I can’t think of too many other performance enhancing drugs for springboard diving. I never felt very good about that one but went on to win two more titles outright so I don’t worry about it too much.
My point is that there are obviously benefits to the person’s life/psyche or the substances wouldn’t be involved in the first place.
Lehmkuhler