No sympathy for athletes

By Orville Higgins

No matter how hard we try to pretend we don't, the truth is that we now have got to be very skeptical of our own athletes and this bothering issue of prohibited substances.

I said a few weeks ago that Jamaicans no longer have the moral authority to point fingers at the USA and insinuate that that country achieved its sprinting success through systematic doping. I felt that we had enough violations of our own in recent times, and pointing fingers at our neighbours up north would be akin to the pot calling the kettle black.

I don't know about you, but I'm running short on patience with the excuses that these athletes give when banned substances are discovered in their system. It's always somebody else's fault. Tyson Gay said he had trusted somebody who had let him down, which is exactly the same story now being given by Asafa Powell and Sherone Simpson. Why should we continue to accept these excuses? Would these athletes give all their life savings to somebody else to bank in their name, to be handed over to the athlete on retirement? I doubt that. They would hardly trust anybody to that extent. This supposed trusting of 'the other person' with essentially your career is nothing more than a passing of the buck. All this is like an addicted smoker blaming his local shopkeeper for selling cigarettes! As long as 'the other person' didn't put a gun to their heads to take these banned supplements, then I will no longer accept the story about 'the other person'.

majority never test positive

It is either that, or 'they didn't know' that the substance was on a banned list. Give me a break! That I no longer will tolerate. I have heard people saying that to be a successful athlete now you need a degree in chemistry, and we make it appear that the 'least little thing' these athletes take will end up on a banned list somewhere. Absolute nonsense! I have news for you. Several successful athletes start and end their career without ever being found positive with anything. Those who are caught are, in fact, a small percentage of those who are involved in the sport. If the vast majority of athletes never test positive, the question must be asked, what are they doing that the others are not doing? Do all these athletes who don't get caught have a degree in chemistry? Why should we accept that it is difficult for athletes not to be caught with something, when in fact the vast majority don't get caught with anything and it is the minority who are found to be positive?

The raw truth is that while athletes of all types have been tarnished with banned substances, the sprinters always seem to be more culpable. Why? I am no longer surprised when I hear of these sprinters being found positive. In fact I've now got to the point where I'm beginning to expect it.

naked truth

The naked truth is that running super fast and being associated with banned substances seem to go hand in hand. Think about this. There have been nine men who have gone faster than 9.80. Only two of them, Usain Bolt and Nesta Carter have enjoyed a career where there is no cloud hanging over their heads. Only these two haven't been implicated with banned substance in one way or other. They were even trying to accuse Carter, who had to come out swinging to defend his name. What does that tell you? The women are hardly better. Think of most of the top female sprinters in the last say 15 years, and you will find that a large percentage of them have been implicated somehow.

Is that mere coincidence? Why don't we hear of say, high jumpers for example, being found positive with the rapidity with which sprinters are? Are high jumpers smarter, or more vigilant, than sprinters, or is it that high jumpers as a rule don't fool around with illegal supplements the way sprinters do? Isn't the answer clear as day? Doesn't it appear obvious that these sprinters court danger, at the very least. So why should we sympathise? If you have unprotected sex you might get pregnant. If you take supplements that you didn't check thoroughly, you might end up in trouble. It's as simple as that. These sprinters made their beds, now they must lie in it!

Orville Higgins is a sportscaster and talk-show host. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com.