letsdope123 wrote:
Thanks Rojo. I'd put the chances of your receiving a full FERPA release at 0.0000001%. I also question how forthcoming ISU would be, as they have seemed to want to sweep this under the rug from the beginning. Don't sell this short as "only" a D3 story - it involves doping in the NCAA, major gaps in USADA's purview to regulate the largest American track league, lack of due diligence on the part of Rowan, possibly dereliction of duty to inform on the part of ISU, and a possible international PED supply chain, among other things. This thread alone might very well have been the catalyst for this entire situation getting the coverage it deserves.
We aren't asking for a full FERPA release. We are asking for a limited release. They have publicly stated he was cleared of any wrongdoing. That is a strong statement and it should be easy to verify. If they don't sign it or if they do and Iowa state doesn't respond to it, then the public has a right to know that.
In researching the story, what I've learned about the institutional reforms that need to be made is staggering.
USADA told me they don't have jurisdiction in cases like this. I believe an athlete could put out a tweet on X saying, "Hey I just bought the whole team steroids" and USADA would not be able to suspend them unless they a) are super fast or b) a USATF member.
That's crazy.
And the NCAA rules on doping are nothing like we are used to seeing at the elite level. The whole thing is primarily based on positive tests. So if you test positive, I believe you are banned for a year. But let's say you purchase drugs but claim you didn't use them. There is no mandatory penalty. It's up to each school to follow their own published guidelines. If everyone on the team tells coach they saw a woman on the team use drugs, but she still test negative, I assume it's still not a mandatory penalty. I think it would still be up to the school to follow their own rules but am not 100% sure.