Drugs in Sport: The Changing Face

When Canadian Sprinter Ben Johnson tested positive for using the banned anabolic steroid stanzolol after he won gold in the 100m at the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games, the world of sport was sent reeling from the blow to its image. For some it was an introduction to the uglier side of the Olympic Games. This was drugs in port at its worst. No one knows what enticed Johnson to take the body-effecting substance which stunned the …

…shortcuts to win. The ending of the ancient Olympic Games happened because of it, and now, in the 20th century, it is close to happening again. The rise of performance enhancers has been uncontrollable. It has exasperated governing bodies around the globe, and it doesn’t look like stopping. Through education, though, the world of sport might be brought back a close to fair as possible. But as fate sees it, complete eradication is impossible.