E Bishop: March 2006

Each spring, it seems like the sunglass and bathing suit advertisements come a little too soon, when summer still seems months away. But, this year, it's March and I've already found my itty bitty bikini and a sweet pair of shades. Thanks to the UCI World Cup, I'm looking forward to spring break in Curacao.

Unfortunately, I'm not the only one - Fillip Meirhaeghe is going to make his return to mountainbike racing at the World Cup opener.

My 'blog is tends to be ridiculously light-hearted and this is my first venture into the realm of controversy, but something serious needs to change when sport allows(?) athletes to return to competition after an unregulated suspension.

Unregulated? Please correct me if I am wrong, but it appears to me that the suspension process has some major flaws.

I'll use Fillip Meirhaeghe as an example, because, well... he makes a pretty good one.

While Fillip was suspended, did he have to submit an athlete location form so the WADA could surprise him at any given hour of any day? Does Belgium even have a national anti-doping association? Would it really matter if they do? Was Fillip subject to any kind out-of-competition testing at all? He obviously did not participate in any in-competition tests.

What's to stop a cheater from continuing to cheat during a suspension?

Certainly not their good moral values; if those worked there wouldn't be cheaters in the first place.

Does it even matter if suspended athletes continue to dope?

YES! Dopers do way more than "suck." They cheat, they lie and they steal.

Let's use EPO as an example, because it too makes a good one.

Without going deep into the details of physiology or pharmacology, I'll assume this: EPO makes the body more fit to handle the stresses of exercise. It doesn't make you faster. It doesn't make you a better racer. If it could, every cancer survivor would be able to win the Tour de France... I had better not start down that road today.

The danger of unregulated suspensions is simple: doping makes the body more fit to handle the stresses of exercise. Doping doesn't just increase racing ability, it enables training ability.

When Fillip's doped-up blood was pumping through his veins, he was able to push the limits of each and every one of his body's systems, and even after his hematocrit returns to its pre-EPO levels, Fillip will continue to reap the benefits of his blood-boosted training.

Because it's bad practice to complain about a problem without offering a solution, I suggest that suspended athletes, who plan to compete following their suspension, should be subject to the same out-of-competition testing that is required of all athletes in good standing. Furthermore, suspended athletes should undergo scheduled testing, much like probation in the criminal justice system.

Who should pay for all these tests? I suggest that the cheater himself foot the bill. Suspension is, after all, the time for cheaters to pay for their offense.

Not fair?

Life isn't.

However, sport should be.

Can anyone answer my questions about suspensions and testing? I'd love to know.

If there is no system in place to test those who are suspended and who plan a return to sport, it seems like suspension is more like free reign to continue to get away with cheating.

My solution is only a suggestion and you can shoot holes through it all day, but something needs to change. What do you think about it?

See you on the beach,
Erin

posted by Erin # 4:55 PM 1 comments

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