January 25/10 14:28 pm - Clean Sport - Interest Grows with Approach of Winter Games

Posted by Editor on 01/25/10
 

With the Vancouver Winter Games fast approaching, the scrutiny on (and interest in) performance-enhancing substances is growing. Below are links to articles on the latest efforts to clean up sport:

Banned Performance-Enhancing Substances - a Primer

The Canwest News Service has published an in-depth look at the categories and history of performance-enhancing substances used at Olympic-level events since 1972. There is nothing particularly new revealed in this article, but it provides an excellent starting point for understanding what various types of substances are out there.

Read the article Here.


WADA Works with Drug Companies

More and more, officials at the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) are working with the pharmaceutical industry to develop tests for potential performance-enhancing substances before they hit the market. One example was the third generation CERA form of EPO, which WADA was alerted about by Swiss manufacturer Roche Holding, and were therefore able to catch Tour de France (and potentially Olympic) cyclists in 2008.

Read the CTV Olympics article Here.


IOC Panel Investigates Sex Ambiguity in Sport

An IOC medical expert panel has concluded that rules should be put in place for determining athlete competition eligibility in cases of athletes identified as female who have medical disorders that include masculine characteristics.

The group, sponsored by the I.O.C. and the governing body for track and field, met in the wake of an international controversy over Caster Semenya, the South African runner who won the 800 meters at the world championships in Berlin in August. Masculinizing disorders are rare but significantly more common among elite athletes than in the rest of the population, according to a medical geneticist who participated in the meetings.

Read the New York Times article Here.


Sport Nutrition Company Guilty of Illegally Spiking Supplements with Steriods

VMG Global, a sports nutrition company in California, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to selling products under the guise of dietary supplements that had been illegally spiked with steroids.

Read the New York Times article Here.