Replies

That was a great article on Edwin Moses. I’ve seen other TV specials profiling him and he’s always presented himself as classy individual of high integrity (pretty typical of Morehouse grads, except perhaps Samuel L. Jackson).

The dirtiest race in history Olympic 100m fin al, 1988

Exum released more than 30,000 pages of documents which include showing Lewis tested positive for three stimulants found in cold medications: pseudoephedrine, ephedrine and phenylpropanolamine. Lewis's training partners DeLoach and Floyd Heard tested positive for the same combination of drugs, which some experts believe can mask more serious drugs such as anabolic steroids.

I could certainly believe that Lewis used anabolic steroids leading up to important meets. His physique certainly morphed from “athletic” to densely muscled and ripped (can you say Usane Bolt – they don’t have resources for testing in Jamaica, or the will, so doping is rampant).

But, Lewis was essentially a pro track and field athlete from the start. That was his job – train. He never seemed to make unusual shifts in running times or jumping distances, unlike Ben Johnson and Usane Bolt.

Also, back in the 1980’s there was a wide variety of natural products that have been in use for decades or millenniums (e.g. GHB(1) “the date rape drug”, once sold at health food stores – probably the only effective treatment for narcolepsy and fibromyalgia, now called Xyrem, is now SUPER expensive and probably the most restricted drug in the USA, and Ma Huang that contains ephedra 2 is like Sudafed, safely used for 4,000 years).

So, some of the rules and allegations for using banned substances are pure BS since they are common supplements for daily living or specific purposes ("rules for thee and not for me").

1) GHB

GHB was sold in health food stores as a performance-enhancing additive in bodybuilding formulas until the Food and Drug Administration banned it in 1990. It is currently marketed in some European countries as an adjunct to anesthesia. GHB is abused for its ability to produce euphoric and hallucinogenic states and for its alleged function as a growth hormone that releases agents to stimulate muscle growth. GHB became a Schedule I Controlled Substance in March 2000.

2)Ephedra

A sympathetic nerve stimulant resembling adrenaline, its effect on the unstriped muscular fibres is remarkable. It acts promptly in relieving swellings of the mucous membrane. It has valuable antispasmodic properties, acts on the air passages and is of benefit in asthma and hay fever; it is also employed for rheumatism; a 5 to 10 per cent solution has mydriatic properties, prophylactically used for low blood pressure in influenza, pneumonia, etc.