Hate to break it to you guys. PEDs are a necessity when you get to the top levels of any sport, and track and field is no exception. They're all incredibly talented and hard working without the drugs but there's just no competing without them. If you're going to take stuff just make sure you don't get caught. It's all part of the game, unfortunately.
^This, unfortunately, in the sprints. I learned it 35 years ago.
People use for one of 3 reasons:
1) they are dumb/innocent, don’t know what’s going on, and are convinced of anything without understanding what they are doing;
2) they are in a crap situation, and have to do what they can because they sense no real options; and
3) they are a-holes with the intent to cheat, and don’t give a crap about anything or anyone but themselves.
Hate to break it to you guys. PEDs are a necessity when you get to the top levels of any sport, and track and field is no exception. They're all incredibly talented and hard working without the drugs but there's just no competing without them. If you're going to take stuff just make sure you don't get caught. It's all part of the game, unfortunately.
Example: are we to assume that Erriyon Knighton has been using steroids since the age of..15 or 16? His physique, while athletic, looks like a young man still developing, not at all like he has 5x the normal amount of testosterone flowing through his veins. He is alien talented, and chose to run rather than play football or basketball, unusual for a young man of his talent.
The mistakes you're making are that you aren't taking into account the genetic response to drugs and you're also thinking of doping as too much of a black-and-white concept. 5x the normal amount of testosterone isn't necessary to make performance gains. Chronically high testosterone levels aren't conducive to a faster runner, otherwise, that would be a biomarker that is looked at with much more consideration, similar to hematocrit. However, being able to manipulate endocrinology during and after a hard block of training is another beast. So the question isn't whether or not an athlete is running a bodybuilder-esque cycle in the offseason, but rather, using exogenous compounds to facilitate natural processes in the body. Hell, my guess is that most sponsored athletes under big companies have doctors on their payroll PRESCRIBING the stuff you would normally pop for. I also highly doubt that any genetic phenom would use suppressive hormones during puberty (unless they had an actual problem where they were unable to undergo puberty) when your body is still learning how to produce them naturally. I'm not an advocate of doping by any means, but the world is not a Disney movie where the bad guys dope and the good guys live like saints. If you dedicate your life to pursuing the highest level of fitness possible for your genetics, and you max out every vector that dictates performance: training, diet, recovery, supplementary work, etc., then why would you leave one facet completely untouched?
The three are household names Mark Otieno Odhiambo (the sprinter who got yanked from the Tokyo Olympics), Maiyo Johnstone Kibet and Alice Jepkemoi Kimutai, all subjects of acres of threads over the years on this forum. These "top" Kenyans are grounds for a blanket ban from the sport.
The evidence is that it's a neighbouring country with a very similar culture, the exact same financial incentives for athletes to dope, the same dodgy Spanish and Italian managers and coaches, and the same suspicious domination of distance running that began almost exactly the period EPO came on the scene.
Ethiopia and Kenya have the similar culture?! They have distinct religion and family structure. They're ancestors are both from separate and isolated groups. Their languages have completely different origins. Never has your white trash ignorance been more vividly on display than right now. You are a sad, hate-filled joke of a man.
I have to say it’s encouraging that there are (so far) few posters here making knee jerk accusations of racism. Simply pointing out the obvious - that there a load of positive drug tests out of Kenya - should not be used as evidence of racism.
Your point is a fair one BUT the racism is there nonetheless. That is why you brought it up.
Ethiopia is a richer country. They have more money to cover ped use up. Just like it’s rampant in America but the money is there to avoid getting popped. They don’t have many burrito lawyers in Kenya.
If Americans are on PEDs and are only running 2:09 marathons they should try to get a refund from their supplier.
Ethiopia is a richer country. They have more money to cover ped use up. Just like it’s rampant in America but the money is there to avoid getting popped. They don’t have many burrito lawyers in Kenya.
More ignorance from the white trash brigade. Kenya"s standard of living index, gnp and gdp are all double of Ethiopians.
Banning all Kenyans at this point is evident of a lack of trust in testing protocols. IF we are to believe that they are catching ALL dopers, why is talk of an international ban even on the tables?
Develop better tests and stop crying.
Keep busting the Kenyans, but don't forget that Ethiopia, the US and Norway exist as well...
Imagine if any other federation had this many positive tests. They should be banned.
It would damage the sport if they were banned!!! The sport is damaged every single race a Kenyan doper is allowed to compete, which is every single event with Kenyan participation.
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