Has drugs degraded the Olympics?

A drug is only illegal if it has been declared so- as for the other guinee pigs- who knows?

Sharkbok

There is a problem with performance enhancing drugs - many of the users develop serious health problems and there are cases where they die when still relatively young.    However, some drugs may still be undetectable and that is where the problem lies.

Lets take an example the case of the California laboratory where performance enhancing drugs were produced.   This factory was discovered in 2001 and then found to be producing undetectable drugs as it main source of income.   It is a fact that this factory was the main supplier of drugs at the time of the Sydney Olympics - the biggest drag fest ever.

Whilst the Amercians and Aussies screamed blue murder about drug usage by the Chinese - the main drug userss resulted in record performances by their own athletes.   One major example was Ian Thorpe - as a 17 year old he cleaned up on the Sydney gold medal list in swimming.    He never swam competitively after the discovery of the drugs factory mentioned.    All kind of personal suggestions were mentioned - but drug usage. 

However, the Aussies have a bad record of drug usage in different sports - they were caught out in a varierty of sports ranging from rugby to even sharpshooting      They cry holier than though - but the real reason is they are lax about the testing of offenders and cases have been reported where findings were hushed up.   In rugby there was a classic case where they came to SA to play the Stormers - there center (Herbert) was so full of drugs - they left him out of the team and played a loosie at center, since testing in SA would not have been hushed up and the best he could have hoped for was a two-year ban.     

great post sharkbok

i think the image of the olympics is really badly scared in the sense that every good performance is being questioned. even myself if anyone does something amazing or break a record the first thought that goes through my mind was that person on some sort of drug. is a sad thing really but there is things like gene doping and growth hormones that cant be tested so i dont know. i much rather just watch my rugga and just try to avoid the subject

it will take years and years before the olympics will get its image back.

Is it the face of the olympics that have been scared, or is it the face of the athletes? What about the 1000's of athletes who compete honestly and clean of drugs? This Olympics has seen a major clampdown on drug testing in a big way. I cannot remember the details, but they gave figures and detail about the drug testing for this event, after the allegations by American coach. I do know that it is way above the minimum requirements set by the IOC and quite a few competitors have already been caught out and sent home.

The anti doping lab is in Essex, and is the most hightec anti-doping lab ever.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-16630588

Another interesting read about the dope-testing:

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19066937

the athletes are the olympics ceradyne they are one in the same. so either way the sport is the one that is under fire if some runner somewhere is doped up. people in general are getting tired of this

Not denying that the athletes are the sport, but what I am trying to say is that it is mot the Olympics, as a single event, that has been scared by the doping. It is sport, and obviously the athletes, in general. It is a general lack of integrity in certain sports people that is the issue here, not the Olympics.

i agree 100%

I don't know what you are talking about. There were 7? people kicked out the day before the games started, but other then that, how many doping offences have occured???

If you are talking about the suspicions of drug use, then no, It hasn't ruined the Olympics. Insinuations are born out of jealousy. So your question should be, has Jealousy ruined the Olympics? I would say No, probably not, but people need to give it a rest.

Alright, Now that I've seen some people busted today, it seems we are having some people caught. Guess I shouldn't come here first........

I for one like it when people get caught. I don;t think it at all ruins the sport, or games. If you ask me, not catching anyone is way worse then having a few caught. If you look at the NFL in the USA, nobody gets caught. Yet their 300 pound men can run 40 yards in 4.5 seconds. Ya, no doping going on there at all......

 @canrugby. I am not sure you understand the question, or your are just forcing your own opinion onto something by mis-contruing the question. I said degraded- not ruined. The Olympics in classic greek times must have been amazing. Although I never liked doing athletic sports when I was in school anyway, so I doubt I would be jealous over someone that could throw a shotput, or high jump etc. For other sports like rugby and surfing I am  envious- but hardely jealous

Degraded, and Ruined? I mean demolish half the building, or the whole thing? I guess there is a difference. :)

Anyway, the jealousy part comes from reading waaaaaaaaaay to many articles about the Chinese cheating. I don't know what type of coverage you guys are getting in SA, but it's getting really tiresome over here reading, and hearing about it. Seems like a lot of people are just jealous, with no proof in the pudding.

I had not heard the news of the athletes being caught today before I made that post, so I just thought it was about the suspicions of doping. Sorry. I know you know this, but you are in the future to me. ;)

 yes I think drugs have degraded the Olympics!