RE: Usain Bolt Stripped Of Medal After Scandal
It's not just a "nasal decongestant" it was one but was taken off of the market for that use because of safety concerns. Its still offered (or at least included in things that are marketed) as a diet aid (as it is also somewhat of a stimulant), some of its effects are to constrict blood vessels, so training under use of it would allow an athlete to get used to performance with restricted blood flow. Then at the time of competition they could stop using it allowing for more effective blood flow, more blood flow = more oxygen to the muscles = better athletic performance. You can't tell me you don't see how doing that would give an athlete a competitive advantage?
That said, Usain Bolt didn't do anything wrong here, and it's a shame he will lose a medal.
Hey justtryme90 I definitely see it all I am saying is regardless the International Olympic Committee are a strict bunch and they have to be rightly so, and yes it really is as he loses that title. Also thats good info you posted.
I see the advantage...but it's one that any athlete could readily do because the stuff is OTC. That was my point. If it's something illegal, or was difficult to obtain that would be different. That's why I think Bolt was unfairly targeted (and I don't even particularly like him).
Bolt wasn't the one who did it, so he wasn't targeted at all. His team mate was targeted, and this was a team event, so it's unfortunate.
However if you are a professional athlete and their is a list of prohibited substances, then you should be cognizant not to take them as that is the price one pays to compete at the highest level. It doesn't matter whether or not the substance is legal to obtain, this is not a criminal punishment, it's a fairness of competition punishment.
""Its interesting as methylhexaneamine was not actually specifically mentioned on the 2008 list of prohibited substances."
Is this retroactive? That would be dumb, something legal at the time of the competition is then said to be illegal. Looks to me that they are targeting the Jamaican team.
I'll bet you every professional athlete takes one or the other supplement, and now they will not be sure of any medal or prize they get because sometime in the future someone decides that substance is illegal they are screwed.
And I'll bet you the people who came to this decision can take a ton of methylhexaneamine they still wouldn't even get close to the slowest guy on the Jamaican team, this is pure crap.
I can give you 2 examples, the baseball players who took enhancers like Sammy Sosa and the others, do you think the supplemetns helped them hit the ball better? No, that was their individual talent, maybe it helped them hit harder but that's as far as it gets. Or take Maradona in 1994 USA World Cup, they got him on an OTC cold medicine, this is just to show you sports as nearly every other aspect of life is just a tightly woven mafia.
Hmm, it does seem like the ban on methylhexaneamine was put in place in 2009. In which case I don't agree with a retroactive ban on those who tested positive in events prior to the ban.
Do I think supplements helped Sammy Sosa hit the ball better, yes absolutely as they allowed him to train at a level surpassing what is possible naturally. Does that discredit his individual talent? No. Sosa was a phenomenal baseball player and exciting to watch. Would he have hit as many home runs with out the doping? Nope. Would he still have hit a lot? Yep.
I mean I understand the logic behind their use, these people spend their whole lives trying to be the best of the best, at some point you start asking your self, what else can I do to achieve this.
As for OTC compounds, the goal for the olympics (or at least what should be the goal) is to create an absolutely level playing field. The games should be a testament to what is the best of the best through human training. The logic behind the banned substances is clear, and their is always biochemical justification for doing so.
That said, I stand by the thought that retroactive removal of accolades for use of substances that were NOT banned at the time is not okay. We make rules of gamesmanship and those rules apply to all moments going forward until a rule is revoked. The rules of gamesmanship don't apply to times before the rules existed.