Yes I remember during 1972 Munich that I think it was German Las Viren won
the marathon when it should have been frank shorter, because Las was doping
or drugs, something to that, and Frank is still trying to strip his medal.
Yes I suppose this has always been there, but it sure doesn't set a good
example for the young up coming kids and who their role models are anymore.
Do you think basically the athletes trust their trainers and take whatever
they give them and think its good for them? Don't they ever question what
the coaches or trainers are giving them and investigate it. I sure would
want to know what my trainer was giving me, vitamins as he says or not,
there is simple lab tests you can do.

----- Original Message -----
From: <llauner@...>
To: "Dee Reed" <deereed@...>;
<fleetfeetrunnersclub@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Friday, October 05, 2007 1:20 PM
Subject: Re: [fleetfeetrunnersclub] Marion Jones admits to doping


>> This is getting bad, so I guess there are no real winners anymore?
>
> I read about this and this is all fallout from a company called BALCO
> which took advantage of many athletes, both Olympic and professional and
> practically junked them up.
>
> There are some great athletes. What I don't like is now the aura of
> suspicion on every athlete that the media places on them after an
> incredible feat, whether it is a win or a record breaker. Back in the
> days of the Cold War and when I was a kid, even in the 1970s and 1980s,
> you heard about the blood doping and all of the other stuff that
> eventually was "discovered" in the 1990s. The surprise was that East
> Germany was more of a villian compared to the Soviet Union. It really
> isn't anything new. Yes, some medals have been stripped and titles have
> been returned.
>
> What young athletes should do is to compete and go at it fair and square.
> But there's always this push for new records and that is not the essence
> or the incentive of competition that needs to exist. It should be on any
> given day, the best time on that day against that field. Athletes
> definitely need to be clean. But it is all of this scrutiny that the
> "jury of the media" and the "court of public opinion" place on the athlete
> that is the real tarnish to track and field and other sports.
>
> Louis
>
>
>