Olympics FanHouse

Matt Lauer Asks Dara Torres: Do You Use Performance-Enhancing Drugs?

Michael David Smith — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 15:40:00 EST

After Dara Torres qualified for the U.S. Olympic swimming team at age 41, some questioned whether such an accomplishment was evidence that she is cheating. On the Today Show this morning, Matt Lauer put the question directly to Torres:

"Have you in the past or are you currently taking or using anything that is banned by your sport?" Lauer asked.

"Absolutely not," Torres said. "In fact, I've taken a proactive approach. I went to [the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency] and I met with the CEO there, and said, 'Hey, people are talking about me, they can't believe I'm doing this. I'm an open book. DNA test me, blood test me, urine test me, do whatever you want.' I want to show people I'm clean."

If Torres is a liar, she's as good a liar as she is a swimmer.

Matt Lauer Asks Dara Torres: Do You Use Performance-Enhancing Drugs? originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Mon, 07 Jul 2008 15:40:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ESPN.com Writer Accuses Dara Torres of Using Performance-Enhancing Drugs

Michael David Smith — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 13:59:00 EST

Filed under: Women's Sports, ESPN, PEDs, USA

The 41-year-old American swimmer Dara Torres won the 100-meter freestyle at the U.S. Olympic trials, and she credited her training regimen for her success at such an advanced age.

But ESPN.com's Pat Forde is not convinced. Forde thinks that the simplest explanation for a super-human athletic performance is that the athlete is using performance-enhancing drugs. He quotes Torres saying, "Anyone who makes any accusations, I see it as a compliment," and writes that she should "take this column as one long compliment."

The meat of Forde's argument is this:

It shouldn't even be possible for a woman in her 40s.
Which is the sticking point. This is all unprecedented -- and after years of being conned, we've become conditioned to question the unprecedented.

Who swims this well at that age? After having a child? Nobody. Ever.

Who takes six years off and comes back better than ever, lowering her best time in the 100 meters from 54.43 seconds in 2000 to 53.78 Friday night? Nobody. Ever.

Who has shoulder and knee surgery and comes back to whip women half her age less than a year later? Nobody. Ever.

Of course, for as long as sports have existed, we've been marveling at achievements that nobody ever accomplished before. Now we seem to have reached the point where instead of marveling, we scoff.

Dara Torres

Dara Torres leaves the starting block in the women's 50-meter freestyle preliminaries at the US Olympic swimming trials in Omaha, Neb., Saturday, July 5, 2008. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Dara Torres leaps off the starting block in the women's 50m freestyle at the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials in Omaha, Nebraska July 5, 2008. REUTERS/Jeff Haynes (UNITED STATES) (BEIJING OLYMPICS 2008 PREVIEW)

Reuters

Dara Torres waves as she carries her daughter Tessa after winning the Women's 100m freestyle and qualifying for her fifth Olympic games at the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials in Omaha, Nebraska, July 4, 2008 REUTERS/Christinne Muschi (UNITED STATES) (BEIJING OLYMPICS 2008 PREVIEW)

Reuters

Dara Torres places her medal around her daughter Tessa after winning the Women's 100m freestyle and qualifying for her fifth Olympic games at the U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials in Omaha, Nebraska, July 4, 2008 REUTERS/Christinne Muschi (UNITED STATES) (BEIJING OLYMPICS 2008 PREVIEW)

Reuters

OMAHA, NE - JULY 04: (L-R) Natalie Coughlin, Emily Silver, Dara Torres and Lacey Nymeyer celebrate after the final of the 100 meter freestyle during the U.S. Swimming Olympic Trials on July 4, 2008 at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Getty Images

OMAHA, NE - JULY 04: Dara Torres, top, touches the wall ahead of Natalie Coughlin, bottom, in the final of the 100 meter freestyle during the U.S. Swimming Olympic Trials on July 4, 2008 at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)

Getty Images

OMAHA, NE - JULY 04: Dara Torres holds daughter Tessa in the awards ceremony for the 100 meter freestyle during the U.S. Swimming Olympic Trials on July 4, 2008 at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Getty Images

OMAHA, NE - JULY 04: Dara Torres waves to the crowd after winning the final of the 100 meter freestyle and qualifying for her fifth Olympic team during the U.S. Swimming Olympic Trials on July 4, 2008 at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Nebraska. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Getty Images

Dara Torres waves the US flag after winning the women's 100-meter freestyle final at the US Olympic swimming trials in Omaha, Neb., Friday, July 4, 2008. Torres, 41, qualified for her fifth Olympics. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)

ESPN.com Writer Accuses Dara Torres of Using Performance-Enhancing Drugs originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Sat, 05 Jul 2008 13:59:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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American Swimmers and Track Athletes Will Be Blood Tested at Trials

Josh Alper — Sat, 28 Jun 2008 12:15:00 EST

Filed under: Track and Field, PEDs, USA

Efforts to ensure a clean U.S. Olympic team have taken a step forward. According to a report in the Tampa Tribune, athletes competing at the trials for the track and field and swimming teams will have their blood tested for the first time in history.

They'll undergo the more familiar urinalysis as well but the blood tests are designed to stop athletes from using HGH and drugs which aid in the enhancement of oxygen transfer to red blood cells. The top finishers at the track trials will be tested, along with other random athletes. In American team sports, blood testing has been controversial because some believe it violates the privacy rights of athletes. With public belief in track at an all time low, however, they can't be quite as choosy about the methods of screening.

"I don't like needles but I don't like people cheating, either," said long jumper Rose Richmond. "They have to do what they have to do. I'll just close my eyes and hold someone's hand when they take my blood."

With the IOC's own methods for detecting EPO, one such drug, called into serious question, blood testing seems a necessary step to qualify any event or team as truly drug free.

American Swimmers and Track Athletes Will Be Blood Tested at Trials originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Sat, 28 Jun 2008 12:15:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sorry, International Olympic Committee, Your EPO Test Doesn't Work

Michael David Smith — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 06:57:00 EST

Filed under: Cycling, PEDs, USA

The International Olympic Committee is adamant that its drug tests are necessary to maintain the integrity of its competitions. But what if those tests don't work?

Gina Kolata of the New York Times has a report that demonstrates that with at least one performance-enhancing drug -- EPO -- the tests don't work.

Kolata writes about some investigators who conducted a study of men who took EPO and whether drug testers could detect it in their urine:

The investigators gave eight young men EPO and collected urine samples on multiple occasions before, during and after the men were doping. The men's urine samples were then sent to two labs accredited by the World Anti-Doping Agency, and EPO tests were requested.
The first lab found some samples positive and a few others suspicious....

The second lab did not deem any urine sample positive for EPO and found only a few to be suspicious. The two labs did not agree on which samples were suspicious.

... none of the subjects would have been charged with using EPO, even though their red blood cell counts rose and their performances on an endurance test improved.

The EPO test is so unreliable as to be useless. That doesn't stop the IOC from using it, though.

Sorry, International Olympic Committee, Your EPO Test Doesn't Work originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Fri, 27 Jun 2008 06:57:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Trevor Graham Convicted, Government Now 2-0 in BALCO Prosecutions

Michael David Smith — Thu, 29 May 2008 13:59:00 EST

Filed under: Track and Field, PEDs, USA

Track coach Trevor Graham was convicted today of lying to investigators about his relationship with a steroids dealer, and the U.S. government is now 2-0 in prosecuting people associated with the BALCO performance-enhancing drug ring.

The first person to be convicted at trial was former cyclist Tammy Thomas, who was found guilty of lying to a federal grand jury when she denied taking steroids. Several others, including BALCO founder Victor Conte (pictured), chemist Patrick Arnold, Olympic sprinter Marion Jones and personal trainer Greg Anderson have taken plea deals. Other athletes, including Barry Bonds, are expected to go on trial this year or next.

Graham was the original BALCO whistle-blower. In 2003 he anonymously sent a syringe containing the designer steroid THG to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, which until then didn't know THG, also known as "The Clear," existed. In the early days of the BALCO story Graham was lauded for turning in the evidence, but as more details emerged about Graham encouraging his own athletes to use performance-enhancing drugs, he became a target of prosecutors.

Trevor Graham Convicted, Government Now 2-0 in BALCO Prosecutions originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Thu, 29 May 2008 13:59:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Congratulations, 2000 Nigerian 4x400 Relay Team: You Just Won the Gold Medal

Michael David Smith — Thu, 22 May 2008 18:09:00 EST

Filed under: Track and Field, PEDs, USA, Africa

I might be getting a little bit ahead of myself with that headline, but only a little bit.

American sprinter Antonio Pettigrew, who was part of Team USA's gold-medal winning 1600-meter relay team at the 2000 Olympics, admitted under oath today that he used performance-enhancing drugs from 1997 to 2001. According to the rules governing international sports, that should result in Team USA being stripped of its gold medal, and the silver medal winners, Nigeria, being awarded the gold.

That 2000 relay has been controversial almost since Team USA crossed the finish line first in Sydney. There were always whispers about doping in American track, and in 2004, another member of the American relay team, Jerome Young, was found to have used performance-enhancing drugs, and Nigeria was awarded the gold.

But the rest of the American runners on that relay team -- including Pettigrew -- appealed the ruling and won, meaning they got to keep their gold and Nigeria had to settle for keeping the silver.

Now that Pettigrew has admitted that he was a cheater, it's hard to see how he can and his teammates can get to keep the gold that they won on that appeal. It's a strange thing about the Olympic Games that you never know if the results you're seeing are real, or if they'll be overturned years later. In the case of the 4x400 relay in 2000, it appears that Nigeria just won its gold medal, eight years after the starter's pistol sounded.

Congratulations, 2000 Nigerian 4x400 Relay Team: You Just Won the Gold Medal originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Thu, 22 May 2008 18:09:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The USOC Is Pretty Sure That the Olympic Team Will Be Drug-Free in Beijing

Josh Alper — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 11:20:00 EST

Filed under: Olympics, Track and Field, PEDs, USA

Maurice Greene became the latest high-profile U.S. Olympian dragged into the doping muck over the weekend, clouding the world of track a little bit more as we move toward Beijing. The New York Times article containing the allegation against Greene, which he's denied, also hints that it could just be the tip of the iceberg as the case against Marion Jones's coach, Trevor Graham, makes its way through court.

The United States Olympic Committee doesn't see that as any reason to worry about athletes using performance enhancing drugs during the Summer Olympics, though. U.S.O.C. Chairman Peter Ueberroth and chief executive Jim Scherr addressed concerns about their team, although they had slightly different levels of conviction.

"[With] the changes we've made to our doping programs, the protocols we've had in place, we're very confident that this team is clean and we'll field a clean team in Beijing," said Scherr. "Of course there's no way we can guarantee anything. But we feel very good about this team and the progress we've made [against] doping."

"This will be a clean team," Ueberroth said.

Scherr went on to call the doping problems part of the past when it's quite clear, from cycling to weightlifting to track, that it is very much a problem of the present. It's great to fight against it, it's great to strive for a clean team but shouldn't Ueberroth know better than to guarantee a clean team?

Coaches have long motivated players by telling them someone, somewhere is practicing so they can whip their butts when they meet on the field. Right now, the truism for the U.S.O.C. is that someone, somewhere is in a lab trying to whip up a new, undetectable formula that can boost an athlete's performance without setting off any red flags in testing.

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. I'd wait until the 2008 Games were well behind you before starting to crow about how clean your team is and how well the changes you've made have worked.

The USOC Is Pretty Sure That the Olympic Team Will Be Drug-Free in Beijing originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Wed, 16 Apr 2008 11:20:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Olympic Cyclist Tammy Thomas Convicted in First BALCO Trial

Michael David Smith — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 07:34:00 EST

Filed under: Olympics, Women's Sports, Cycling, PEDs, USA

A verdict was reached Friday in the first trial related to the BALCO investigation, and Olympic cyclist Tammy Thomas has been convicted of three counts of perjury and one count of obstruction of justice for lying to a grand jury about her steroid use.

Testimony in Thomas's trial drew attention for the changes that steroids had on Thomas's body, including facial hair, chest hair, a beard and male pattern baldness.

The feds' investigation of BALCO cast a wide net, with eight of the accused already pleading guilty. Thomas was the first to fight the charges at trial, and her conviction is bad news for Barry Bonds, whose case closely resembles Thomas's.

Among those who have taken guilty pleas are BALCO founder Victor Conte, former Olympic sprinter Marion Jones, Bonds' trainer Greg Anderson and chemist Patrick Arnold.

Olympic Cyclist Tammy Thomas Convicted in First BALCO Trial originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Sat, 05 Apr 2008 07:34:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HGH Blood Test Expected for All Olympians

Michael David Smith — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 14:37:00 EST

Filed under: Olympics, PEDs, Beijing

The New York Times is reporting that the World Anti-Doping Agency has purchased thousands of kits to screen blood for human growth hormone, which will facilitate the testing of all athletes participating in the Summer Olympics in Beijing.

HGH testing is not new -- some athletes were tested at the 2004 and 2006 Olympics -- but conducting the testing on a large scale is unprecedented because in the past there have been problems with manufacturing the thousands of testing kits needed to test every athlete. WADA says it has purchased the kits from a European company it would not name.

"We are pleased that the test will be in place for Beijing," David Howman, WADA's director general, said in a telephone interview. "The test has been around for a while; it was a matter of finding the manufacturer."

If the tests prove reliable, and if the company is able to produce the thousands of kits it says it will sell to WADA, there will be increased pressure on American sports leagues, including the NFL and Major League Baseball, to adopt blood testing for HGH.

Among the Olympians who have admitted to HGH use is Marion Jones, who is currently serving time in federal prison for lying to federal investigators.

HGH Blood Test Expected for All Olympians originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Wed, 02 Apr 2008 14:37:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Female Cyclist on Trial for Perjury; Steroids Caused Deep Voice, Beard, Chest Hair

Michael David Smith — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 08:10:00 EST

Filed under: Olympics, Cycling, PEDs, USA

Female Olympic cyclist Tammy Thomas is the first athlete to face a criminal trial on charges related to the BALCO investigation, and testimony in her perjury trial reveals odd side effects of her alleged steroid use. Lance Williams of the San Francisco Chronicle reports:

Thomas seemed to be in the midst of shaving her face when an Olympic drug tester paid her an unannounced visit. ...

Prosecutors have called Thomas a "hard-core" steroid user who underwent a physical transformation while using banned drugs. On Monday, a Colorado endocrinologist who examined Thomas in 2000 said the cyclist's use of the steroid depo-testosterone had caused "severe virilization."

Thomas had a deep voice, full beard, chest hair and even signs of male pattern baldness, Dr. Margaret Weirman testified.

Thomas told the grand jury that investigated BALCO that she never used banned drugs. She is now charged with perjury and obstruction of justice for those statements. Seven people have pleaded guilty to crimes arising from the BALCO case. Barry Bonds is expected to face trial on charges similar to Thomas's late this year or early next year.

Female Cyclist on Trial for Perjury; Steroids Caused Deep Voice, Beard, Chest Hair originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Thu, 27 Mar 2008 08:10:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Marion Jones Reports to Prison

Michael David Smith — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 19:39:00 EST

Filed under: Olympics, Women's Sports, Track and Field, PEDs, USA

Three-time Olympic gold medalist Marion Jones reported to prison today to begin serving her six-month sentence for lying to federal investigators about a check-fraud scheme and about her use of performance-enhancing drugs.

Jones reported to the Federal Medical Center Carswell in Fort Worth, Texas, which is described on its web site as a facility that "provides specialized medical and mental health services to female offenders." It is not clear what specialized medical and mental health services Jones needs.

Although Jones is listed on the Bureau of Prisons web site as "not in BOP custody," a Bureau spokeswoman confirmed that Jones has reported and that she was assigned the inmate number 84868/054.

It's a sad fall from grace for Jones, who was once the world's most celebrated female athlete but has now had her medals taken away and her name wiped from the record books. Her projected release date is July 9, 2008.

Marion Jones Reports to Prison originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Fri, 07 Mar 2008 19:39:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Marion Jones Sentenced: Six Months in Prison

Michael David Smith — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 11:59:00 EST

Filed under: Olympics, Women's Sports, Track and Field, The Word, PEDs

Track and field superstar Marion Jones was sentenced this morning to six months in prison for lying to federal investigators about the BALCO steroid ring and for lying about a check-fraud scheme involving her ex-boyfriend, the Olympic sprinter Tim Montgomery.

The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Kenneth Karas, who had previously indicated that he would give Jones a stiffer sentence than prosecutors had recommended.

Lying to investigators is a serious crime, but the subject of athletes using steroids seems better suited for the International Olympic Committee and the track and field governing bodies to police for themselves, not for the federal government to get involved in.

Check fraud, however, has the potential to harm its victims, and that part of this story -- which has made fewer headlines than her involvement in BALCO -- makes it harder to feel sympathy for Jones. Montgomery, who is the father of Jones' son, has already been convicted of the check scam. By lying to U.S. Department of Homeland Security agents about it, Jones was trying to help Montgomery steal from innocent victims.

Jones must begin her sentence two months from today, March 11. The photo shows Jones, appearing to be in good spirits, entering Federal Court in White Plains, New York this morning.

Marion Jones Sentenced: Six Months in Prison originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Fri, 11 Jan 2008 11:59:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Marion Jones' Career Has Been Erased

Michael David Smith — Fri, 23 Nov 2007 16:30:00 EST

Filed under: Olympics, Women's Sports, Track and Field, PEDs

It's official: Marion Jones' track and field career ended before September of 2000.

You might think you remember Jones having a much longer career than that, but the International Association of Athletics Federations has ruled that all of Jones' results dating to September 2000 -- including the gold medals she won at the Olympics that month -- have been annulled because she admits she used steroids.

The IAAF, which is track and field's governing body, has ordered Jones to return about $700,000 in prize money, although there are reports that Jones is broke and won't be able to pay the money back.

Although I fully understand that track and field has rules and that Jones broke them, I think it's silly to just pretend her career never happened. Steroid users like Shawne Merriman, Mark McGwire and Barry Bonds still have their accomplishments in the record books. Jones should too. Fans are free to determine for themselves to discount the accomplishments of Merriman, McGwire, Bonds or Jones, but it's an insult to our intelligence for the people who run the sport to tell us those accomplishments never happened.

Marion Jones' Career Has Been Erased originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Fri, 23 Nov 2007 16:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Marion Jones Passed 160 Drug Tests

Michael David Smith — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 16:35:00 EST

Filed under: Olympics, Women's Sports, Track and Field, PEDs

The World Anti-Doping Agency is a useless organization that has totally failed at its mission to rid sports of performance-enhancing drugs.

That's the only conclusion I can come up with from reading this comment from the head of the World Anti-Doping Agency, Dick Pound, discussing Marion Jones:

"It is not much fun to find that someone who has been tested 160 times admits to doping," he said. "I am not happy to hear that someone who had that many tests was a user for that many years."

Yes, Marion Jones, who admits that her great track and field career was fueled by steroids, took 160 drug tests, and she went a perfect 160-for-160. So I ask you: What's the point of testing for steroids at all? Why are tests that can be beaten consistently any better than no test at all?

Marion Jones Passed 160 Drug Tests originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Fri, 16 Nov 2007 16:35:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Is Cocaine a Performance Enhancing Drug?

Josh Alper — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 16:35:00 EST

Filed under: International Tennis, PEDs

There were two big press conferences in the world of sports yesterday. Joe Girardi's first outing as Yankee manager wasn't notable but Martina Hingis' meeting with the media in Zurich was pretty shocking. She announced that she had been accused of testing positive for cocaine during Wimbledon and then announced she was retiring from tennis. She's retiring because such a test carries an anti-doping suspension of two years and she didn't want to put her career on hold to fight the allegations.

The image of Hingis blowing lines is certainly one I'd never contemplated, but something else that struck me as odd was that cocaine is considered a violation of doping regulations. We've all become familiar with the phrase from the Olympics and Tour de France and associate it with steroids, human growth hormone and other chemicals taken to gain a competitive advantage on the field of play. Cocaine has been around sports for a long time, but it brings to mind Michael Irvin and a house full of strippers or Doc Gooden and Darryl Strawberry on an '86 Mets road trip.

In other words, its something you use to get a competitive advantage off the field of play.

Could it work the other way, though? It's not exactly a secret that doing too much blow isn't going to leave you in any condition to play sports, but Dr. Gary Wadler of the World Anti-Doping Agency says that not all of its effects would be negative.

"The acute effects of cocaine probably, overall, would impair and not enhance performance. But within a two-hour window, you may actually have some enhancement - overcoming fatigue, reaction time, and so on."

If Hingis did use coke for athletic enhancement reasons she certainly wouldn't be the first athlete to do so. In the late 1970's, Hollywood Henderson, a linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys, carried a nasal inhaler filled with a mixture of cocaine and water in his uniform during games. Lawrence Taylor has also admitted to being high during games, and its not a stretch to say that both linebackers used the drug to help foster the self-confidence and euphoria that scientists believe cocaine provides its users. They probably aren't the only NFL (or other sports) players who felt, rightly or wrongly, that those "benefits" would help them succeed on the playing field.

It bears mentioning that Henderson said he felt "out of control" when he snorted during games and -- as anyone who's seen the last 20 minutes of "Goodfellas" could testify -- there's a very fine line where cocaine stops doing anything good and creates a frenzied state of paranoia. There are plenty of legal, non-hurtful ways to overcome fatigue and help reaction time on the market that any responsible person or athlete would and should use instead of cocaine.

That doesn't mean Hingis didn't use the drug to help her on the court, though. Doesn't mean she did, either, or even that she used it at all. It just means that if she did, the International Tennis Federation would be within its rights to ban her for using performance-enhancing drugs.

Is Cocaine a Performance Enhancing Drug? originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Fri, 02 Nov 2007 16:35:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ben Johnson on Marion Jones: 'Everyone on the International Level Is Using PEDs'

Michael David Smith — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 16:46:00 EST

Filed under: Olympics, Track and Field, PEDs

If there are two subjects about which Ben Johnson knows a lot, they're sprinting and steroids, so it makes sense, I guess, that he'd be asked what he thinks about Marion Jones.

It was Al-Jazeera, of all places, that got the interview with Johnson, and here's what he had to say:

"I believe that everyone on the international level is using performance-enhancing drugs. And, you know, it's widespread and it's going to continue on. A lot more people (are) going to be also coming forward.''

Of course, Johnson desperately wants the public to think that everyone uses performance-enhancing drugs because if that's the case, then he wasn't doing anything different from anyone else when he got busted, and that legitimizes his accomplishments.

But I don't think that's true. Although I agree that far more athletes use performance-enhancing drugs than get caught, I don't buy the cynical view that literally everyone in international competition is using them. And I don't think Johnson believes it either. He just thinks if he can convince others it's true, he'll look better in comparison.

Ben Johnson on Marion Jones: 'Everyone on the International Level Is Using PEDs' originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Sat, 13 Oct 2007 16:46:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Marion Jones' Relay Teammate Passion Richardson: I Want to Keep My Medal

Michael David Smith — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 08:02:00 EST

Filed under: Olympics, Women's Sports, Track and Field, PEDs

That's Marion Jones on the right and Passion Richardson on the left in that photo, taken when they competed against each other in the 2000 Olympic trials.

But they also competed together, on the 4x100 relay team, in the 2000 Olympics, and they won a bronze medal. And now that Jones has given back her medals after admitting to using steroids, the U.S. Olympic Committee has asked Richardson and Jones' other relay teammates to give back their medals, too.

Richardson, however, is fighting back. She went on the CBS Early Show this morning to say that she has never cheated and shouldn't have to forfeit the medal she worked so hard for, and I'm sure you'll be seeing her turning up on lots of other TV shows.

I don't think Richardson should give her medal back, but I also don't think Jones should have given her medals back. If you do think stripping Jones of her medals was the right call -- and almost everyone besides me does -- then you also have to think Richardson should give up her medals, too. Either the results of that relay were legitimate or they weren't. If Jones didn't really deserve a bronze medal, then neither does Richardson.

Marion Jones' Relay Teammate Passion Richardson: I Want to Keep My Medal originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Wed, 10 Oct 2007 08:02:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Marion Jones Hands Over Her Medals; She Should Have Kept Them

Michael David Smith — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 20:11:00 EST

Filed under: Olympics, Track and Field, PEDs

Former track star and current convicted felon Marion Jones has voluntarily relinquished the five Olympic medals she won at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, fulfilling a request from the U.S. Olympic Committee and the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.

I guess some people think Jones did the honorable thing here, but I think she should have kept her medals. The 2000 Olympics weren't a figment of our collective imaginations; they actually happened. Jones actually did win those three golds and two bronzes. The International Olympic Committee has the right to alter the record books, mint new medals and give them to the new winners, but I would have no problem with Jones keeping those mementos of her past.

I know of no one who seriously believes steroid users like Shawne Merriman, Mark McGwire and Barry Bonds are going to hand over any bats, balls, trophies or other tangible items associated with the accomplishments they achieved while using steroids. So why should Jones?

Marion Jones Hands Over Her Medals; She Should Have Kept Them originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Mon, 08 Oct 2007 20:11:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Do You Want Your Tax Dollars Investigating Marion Jones' Steroid Use? I Don't

Michael David Smith — Sat, 06 Oct 2007 13:38:00 EST

Filed under: Olympics, Track and Field, PEDs

As Marion Jones has admitted, she used steroids before her five-medal performance at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, and when federal investigators asked her about it, she lied. Lying to federal investigators is, and should be, a felony, and people who commit felonies should be sent to prison, which is what will happen to Jones.

But do you really want your tax dollars financing the type of investigation in which pro athletes are asked whether they used steroids? I don't.

Performance-enhancing drug use is a serious issue in sports, and it's fine for sports leagues to devote resources to catching cheaters. But is this really what we want our government doing? Any money and manpower that goes toward federal investigators trying to catch steroid users is money and manpower that can't go toward investigating other crimes. Marion Jones is a criminal, but does anyone really think her crimes are worthy of the kind of resources the government apparently put into investigating her.

I'm not sure that my view on this is completely rational. I feel more sympathy for Jones than I do for other athletes who have been investigated for their connection to BALCO, like Barry Bonds and Bill Romanowski. I guess I just find Jones more likable than either of them, not that being likable is an excuse for committing a crime.

Really, there is no excuse for what Jones did. But that doesn't mean I want my tax dollars spent on sending her to prison.

Do You Want Your Tax Dollars Investigating Marion Jones' Steroid Use? I Don't originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Sat, 06 Oct 2007 13:38:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Who Gets Marion Jones' Gold Medals?

Michael David Smith — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 15:11:00 EST

Filed under: Olympics, Track and Field, PEDs

Now that Marion Jones has admitted to using steroids prior to the 2000 Olympics, it's just a matter of time before she gets stripped of the five medals (three gold, two bronze) she won in Sydney. But who gets those medals?

The answer is more complex than you might realize, and the reason is that performance-enhancing drug use is so widespread in track and field. In the above photo, Jones is on the medal stand after winning the 100-meter gold, with silver medalist Ekaterini Thanou of Greece and bronze medalist Tanya Lawrence of Jamaica. Ordinarily, Olympic rules would dictate that Thanou is retroactively named the gold medalist, but she's been at the center of a doping scandal, too, a scandal that kept her out of the Olympics when they were in her home country in 2004.

For some reason, though, she hasn't been stripped of her silver, which apparently means she'll get the gold, and Lawrence will get the bronze. And the other silver medalists will get Jones' other golds, and the fourth-place finishers will get her bronzes. At least, until the next drug scandal changes the record book again.

I don't think Jones should be stripped of her medals, just as I don't think steroid users Mark McGwire and Barry Bonds should be stripped of their home run records, and just as I don't think steroid user Shawne Merriman should be stripped of his status as the NFL's 2006 sack leader. The events happened, and we can't pretend they didn't. But that's what the IOC does.

Who Gets Marion Jones' Gold Medals? originally appeared on Olympics FanHouse on Fri, 05 Oct 2007 15:11:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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