Indiana should drug test athletes

By Vince Alexander
     In track and field, it was dramatic. The batons were out. The anchor runners had the crowd oohing and aahing during the final race of the evening – the 1600-meter relay – of the recent Marion County boys’ track and field meet.

     With the winning relay in doubt, an anchor runner dove for the finish line, and won. The crowd went wild.
     Diving to win a race is valiant and cool. A skin burn might be the worst you could get.
     However, cheating – especially using a performance-enhancing drug to win – is not cool. Eventually, I’d like to see all athletes competing in a state finals – especially in track and football – tested before they compete. I’m just concerned that a small minority of runners in Indiana want to win so badly that they’d cheat.
     The states of Texas and Florida agree. Because of the Internet, these things like steroids and human growth hormones are easier to get. Texas already has random drug testing in place for its high school track athletes. Next year, Florida will do the same.
     Don’t be mistaken, cheating by using performance-enhancing drugs in sports, especially track and field, has been around for a long time. Coaches, parents, and fans, don’t forget former Olympic stars Ben Johnson of Canada and Marion Jones of the United States.
     Today’s teens may be too young to know their stories. Johnson was considered the world’s fastest human. Johnson shocked the world in 1987 by winning the 100-meter dash in a world-record time of 9.83 seconds during the World Championship track meet in Rome. For about a year, Johnson was the most admired sprinter in the world. Unfortunately, he was a cheater. In 1988, he was kicked out of the 1988 Olympics for using steroids.
     On the women’s side, Jones paid the biggest price for wanting to win so badly that she resorted to cheating. Jones had to give back five of her medals – three gold and two bronze – after admitting she cheated. She had won gold medals in the 100, 200, and 1600 relay, and she won bronze medals in the 400 relay and the long jump. She admitted using a designer steroid called “the clear” from September of 2000 to July of 2001.
     Jones’ problems didn’t end there. She received a six-month prison sentence for admitting she lied about her use of steroids and for being a part of a check-fraud scheme.
     We can all learn from Johnson and Jones. If you get to the top by cheating – the fall from the top leaves more than just a track burn after a dive at the finish line – it could potentially ruin your life.
     Cheating in anything, including track and field, just isn’t worth it.