German TV documentary about doping in athletics

At the start of December 2014, a German TV documentary was aired which alleged that athletics in Russia was rotten to the core with doping being sanctioned and covered up at the highest levels. The implications reach all the way to the IAAF, the world governing body for athletics. It's fair to say that this is probably one of the most significant stories to hit athletics in recent times and will probably have huge repercussions.

The one hour programme in German can be seen below with English subtitles.

Part 1 of 4

Part 2 of 4

Part 3 of 4

Part 4 of 4

The effects of doping may last up to 10 years

Back in August, the IAAF (International Association of Athletics Federations) announced that from 2015, athletes found guilty of using banned substances will be given a four year ban instead of the current two.

A recent study in Norway with mice suggests that taking certain steroids can have a lasting effect on the subjects for a very long time after the doping session. It was found that if the mice had a brief exposure to testosterone then they  found that three months after the drug was withdrawn, their muscles grew by 30% after six days of exercise. A control group of mice saw growth of just 6% in the same time period. It was found that the brief exposure to the drug boosted the number of cell nuclei which help to build muscle. This new research is a follow on from a previous study which suggested that if people exercised when they were young then their muscles grew more easily when they were adults.

Prof Gundersen, the scientist behind the study published in the journal of Physiology says that if a similar effect can be shown in humans, it should lead to a lifetime ban for dopers. He is quoted as saying..."If it is sufficient to build muscle mass, I think it would be sufficient to give you this long term effect. I think it could last 10 years but I don't have the data to back that up. It would be my speculation yes. In science if you cheat, you are out for life, and my personal view is that it should be similar for athletes. It is a harsh treatment but if you really are cheating, I think that's reasonable."

The Norwegian research team now believes that their research calls into question the current proposal from the World Anti Doping Agency (Wada) to raise the penalty for dopers from two years to four.

WADA to adopt four year ban for drugs cheating...

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) have recently announced that they will be introducing a new four year ban for serious drugs offences. This will be introduced in 2013 and be applied at the start of 2015. The new rule doubles the length of existing bans for serious drug offences including anabolic steroids, human growth hormone, masking agents, trafficking and prohibited methods. WADA president John Fahey said: “It is clear from the number of submissions we received, that there is a strong desire in the world of sport, from governments and within the anti-doping community to strengthen the sanction articles in the code. Athletes must know that there is a heavy price to pay for intentional doping, that the risks are high. I am confident this draft will deliver that message loud and clear, and that our own stakeholders will agree.”

The current two year ban has meant that athletes can fail just after an Olympic Games and still compete in the next one. Many have complained that a two year ban is not much different than an athlete picking up an injury and coming back from it and as such, was not enough of a deterrent. The new four year ban changes that with athletes now guaranteed to miss an Olympic cycle which in many cases may well be the end of their career.