Doping

Seminary work „Doping“
Doping is the use of banned athletic performance-enhancing drugs by athletic

competitors. The term doping is widely used by organizations that regulate sporting competitions.
The use of drugs to enhance performance is considered unethical, and therefore forbidden, by
most international sports organizations, including the International Olympic Committee.
Furthermore, athletes (or athletic programs) taking explicit measures to evade detection
exacerbate the ethical violation with overt deception and cheating.
The origins of doping in sports go back to the very creation of sport itself. From
ancient usage of substances in chariot racing to more recent controversies in baseball and cycling,
popular views among athletes have varied widely from country to country over the years. The
general trend among authorities and sporting organizations over the past several decades has been
to strictly regulate the use of drugs in sport. The reasons for the ban are mainly the health risks of
performance-enhancing drugs, the equality of opportunity for athletes, and the exemplary effect of
drug-free sport for the public. Anti-doping authorities state that using performance-enhancing
drugs goes against the "spirit of sport".
History of Doping
The use of drugs in sports goes back centuries, about all the way back to the very
invention of the concept of sports. In ancient times, when the fittest of a nation were selected as
athletes or combatants, they were fed diets and given treatments considered beneficial to help
increase muscle. For instance, Scandinavian mythology says Berserkers could drink a mixture
called "butotens", to greatly increase their physical power at the risk of insanity. One theory is
that the mixture was prepared from the Amanita muscaria mushroom, though this has been
disputed.
The ancient Olympics in Greece have been alleged to have had forms of doping. In ancient Rome,
where chariot racing had become a huge part of their culture, athletes drank herbal infusions to
strengthen them before chariot races.
Doping has not always been prohibited in competitive sports; in fact the Ancient
Greeks found it acceptable to use performance-enhancing drugs during the original Olympic
Games when competing for prizes. It was not until the doping-related deaths of Tour de France
cyclists Knut Jensen in 1960 and Tommy Simpson in 1967 that things changed.
Inevitably, pressure mounted on sporting agencies to take action against doping. In

1967 The International Olympic Committee (IOC) established the Medical Commission with the
following three guiding principles: ‘protection of the health of athletes, respect for medical and
sports ethics and equality for all competing athletes.’ The following year the IOC conducted its
first drug testing at the Olympic Games.
Despite the introduction of anti-doping legislation and tests for drug use, Tour de
France riders and Olympic athletes became increasingly adept at circumventing the controls, and
finding better alternatives that could not be detected. An infamous incident occurred at the 1978
Tour de France, where Belgian rider Michel Pollentier attempted to use an intricate system of
tubes concealed on his person that included someone else’s ‘clean’ urine for his drugs test. This
exemplifies the lengths riders would go to in order to achieve marginal gains in performance.
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) was first established in 1999 pursuant to
the terms of the Lausanne Declaration on Doping in Sport. WADA was set up to promote and
coordinate the fight against doping in sport internationally.[4] At this stage the aims of anti-
doping legislation shifted focus to ensuring clean and fair competitive sports.
The harms / risks of taking performance-enhancing drugs
Lack of evidence around the harms or risks of taking WADA banned substances may
impact on the safety of a significant number of professional athletes, especially if higher estimates
of the extent of doping.
A literature review around performance-enhancing substances in sports notes, for

example, that the side effects of EPO “should not be underestimated” and that “adverse effects
include hypertension, headaches, and an increased risk for thromboembolic event… Furthermore,
with large doses, EPO may cause death”. It goes on to observe that “during the first year EPO was
released, five Dutch cyclists died of unexplained causes.” Such observations highlight that, unlike
packets of cold and flu remedies in bathroom cabinets which provide detailed breakdowns of
various risks, no such information is available to dopers: instead, they rely on luck, and the
anecdotal experiences of others.
With this in mind, it was suggested at the BL event that the possible long-term harms
of using performance-enhancing drugs is a significant argument for banning them. However, at
the same event this suggestion was countered by an argument which held that the safety of
athletes can be improved significantly through the open monitoring of performance-enhancing
drugs – i.e. envisaging a situation where performance-enhancing substances are no longer banned.
How doping substances are administered, and by whom
Recent high-profile cases such as the Russian doping programme and earlier
revelations including “the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program
that sport has ever seen” by the US Postal Service Pro Cycling team have exposed tactics and
approaches to doping on a large scale. But what do we know about how performance-enhancing
drugs are administered more widely?
Clearly, those who are involved in administering banned substances to athletes will be
far from open about their methods. Thus, as highlighted by UKAD at the BL event, there is a
reliance on intelligence-led enforcement, and an active policy of ‘going after the coach’ where
there is a suspicion that he / she is providing access to banned substances to a number of athletes.
Indeed, given what kind of medical equipment and infrastructure is sometimes required to
administer – and cover up the use of – substances, it is hard to imagine many athletes being able
to manage doping on their own. However, aside from deduction and statements from athletes who
have themselves been ‘caught’, the evidence is, again, seemingly limited.
Punishments for doping
Article 10.1 states that if an athlete is found to have violated an anti-doping legislation rule during
or in preparation for an event, they will be disqualified of all the results obtained in the event and
will forfeit any medals, points and prizes won.[8] The period of ineligibility, following a violation
of a rule, varies from 2 years, 4 years or a lifetime ban. During the period of ineligibility, the
athlete will be withheld any sports-related financial support or benefits. The IOC and the
International Paralympic Committee (IPC) both have the power to ban an entire country from
competing at their respective Games.
After an investigation on Russia revealed state sponsored doping on an unprecedented scale. The
IOC deferred the decision to take aggressive action to the individual sports federations, such as
the International Association of Athletics Associations (IAAF). The IAAF placed a ban on
Russian athletes from competing in track and field for Russia at the Rio 2016 Olympics. Further
to this, the IPC decided to blanket ban Russia from the Paralympics, as well as suspending the
Russian Paralympic Committee’s (RPC) membership to the IPC. Following the IPC’s decision,
the RPC appealed to Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
Doping in sport - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doping_in_sport
NUFILED COUNCIL ON BIOETHIC - https://www.nuffieldbioethics.org/blog/start-7-

uncertainties-sports-doping
Doping in Sports: past, present and future LexisNexis Blog -

https://www.lexisnexis.co.uk/blog/dispute-resolution/doping-in-sport-past-present-and-future

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Seminary work „Doping“

Doping is the use of banned athletic performance-enhancing drugs by athletic

Inevitably, pressure mounted on sporting agencies to take action against doping. In

A literature review around performance-enhancing substances in sports notes, for

How doping substances are administered, and by whom

Punishments for doping

Doping in sport - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doping_in_sport

NUFILED COUNCIL ON BIOETHIC - https://www.nuffieldbioethics.org/blog/start-7-

Doping in Sports: past, present and future LexisNexis Blog -

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