Drug Testing Athletes—Is it Necessary?

Athletes are always put on a pedestal especially in today’s society. A lot of publicity are given to them and they are offered sky-high salaries if they truly excel in their respective field other than that they manage to get millions of dollars in product endorsements. However, some athletes choose to take short cuts and exploit drugs to enhance their athletic abilities, they would think “why not?” as long as they’re getting significant incentives for it. This is why a lot of international sports federation requires drug-testing athletes.

Drug testing athletes is done even from collegiate athletes to Olympic athletes. Drug tests are mainly conducted to confirm whether or not an athlete is using performance-enhancing drugs. Drug testing procedure is so strict and firm that anyone who’s violating the policy shall be suspended and not allowed to join any competition.

When drug testing athletes, they are required to submit urine specimen before and after the competition. Sometimes a urine sample is not enough to detect other substance abuse, others are required to surrender a blood specimen. It may look like a simple procedure but it is highly regulated as it is a formal process that may have a lot of consequences if not regarded appropriately.

In any case that the specimen is proven tampered, an athlete who lost his place, medal or accolade or endorsements may file a lawsuit against the federation. It’s why there are firm protocols in terms of handling and delivering the specimen to avoid any tamper of the proof.

Some athletes at all levels of sports competition are willing to use banned performance-enhancing drugs even if they know they are violating the rules and expose their health to hazardous situations. An example of an athlete who got disqualified and never to be heard off again is Ben Johnson, he broke the 100 meter record in 1988 Olympics but by distastefully using illegal substances.

Drug testing athletes is the key in preserving the integrity of sportsmanship by restricting drug use.

Drug abuse will be prevented if there is constant and random test being conducted. To avoid unfair competition drug testing athletes is a must.

Finally it can also save the health of athletes give them a better quality of life after their competitive days.