Now that the dust has settled following the much publicized Kanye West performance at the closing ceremonies of the PanAm Games, we can focus on something of far greater importance that took place during the three week event : a new PanAm record when it comes to positive doping tests. 17 total positive tests with athletes coming from a multitude of disciplines including the usual suspects such as weightlifting, cycling and athleticism.
In contrast, the Tour de France can brag that it only had one positive test in this year’s edition. Luca Paolini tested positive for cocaine. Sceptics point to him as an easy target for officials who are looking to catch culprits at least to show that the tests are indeed taking place.
In reality, it’s nearly impossible to imagine that all 198 (minus 1) cyclists to start the Tour were clean. The stakes are just too high. The same can be said when it comes to triathlon. Doping is most likely a reality since opportunities to cheat are a plenty.
Doping in sports is a fascinating topic, but rare are the people that actually understand it. Would it be so absurd to think that anti doping agencies will end up winning the eternal battle they have taken on? At this very moment, new protocols to detect the newest doping substances have been put in place. Once validated, such testing protocols will be able to detect all synthetic substances and blood-doping and should put an end to the type of doping that we have come to know. Or perhaps we’re just dreaming in color…
Officials are quite aware that many athletes attempt to hid out in non accessible destinations such as islands and mountain tops.
For the time being though, lets call a spade a spade. Many substances are not detectable and many will be able to take it to their grave since their federations don’t have the ressources (or the desire) of retroactively testing for these substances. This is a luxury reserved for the Olympic Games.
And so we are at a stand still where everyone attempts to have an ‘educated’ opinion on the matter based on what the public knows. Take the case of this year’s Tour winner. For many, Froome is clean. His childhood, the way he interacts with the media and other aspects of his personality is proof enough for his supporters. Cheaters must then have a particular face and an apparent thirst for winning at all cost. That said, during the PanAm games, one of the good guys tested positive for EPO (the Chilean marathoner who was also a devoted guide for a blind compatriot.
Even though many now rely on a more scientific approach (with the emergence power output estimates), we’ve now put our trust on data taken from pm’s that are not always the most reliable.
The saddest part is that we are now being led to believe that we can reach a physiological summit, as though training methods, at one point, no longer allowed for progression. A performance though is by all accounts the result of a physiological profile and of its mechanical efficiency. Should we believe that athletes who flirt with perfection in both of these simply don’t exist?
Sadly, athletes are still not in the know when it comes to all doping related protocols and testing. Cyclists claim to be the most tested of all athletes. A greater number of tests, perhaps. But a greater quality? That is the question. How can they explain that Johan Bruyneel still has VIP status in the world of cycling or that Michele Ferrari continues to play ‘doc-coach’ in posting astonishing advice on his online forum. Has our mentality really changed?
Lets return to the case of the PanAm games. I can assure you that the culprits did not expect to get caught and that the only reason they were caught is because testing was more sophisticated than anticipated. GHRP2, FG-4592, EPO (micro doses), Clenbuterol and Stanozolol, are all substances that are detectable in blood testing.
When it comes to triathlon, we must differentiate appearances with reality. Sure, some athletes are controlled out of competition with blood tests and more often than not, these tests are initiated by more conscientious national agencies. Certain nations have excellent reputations and even go as far as testing their athletes that are stationed abroad (USADA).
But for every agency with a good reputation, there is one with a not so good reputation. Some eastern countries have totalled a minute 15 out of competition tests, all sports combined. The testing of triathletes, for some reason, is nearly impossible. In a report published by the the WADA in 2013, we learned that the Spanish Triathlon Federation reported no less than 15 tests for which the athletes failed to show up. This number is quite high compared to other nations.
The cherry on top? Ironman races with no doping controls still exist! When there are doping controls, they are usually limited to urine tests. More sophisticated testing is more expensive. No need to look any further for an explanation.
A negative control doesn’t necessarily mean that an athlete is clean, but rather that certain substances were not found.
Without blood testing, it’s impossible to find substances such as EPO in micro doses and HGH’s.
For those who care to know, athletes competing in ITU events know that post race testing can include blood samples. And there are rumours of certain athletes who tend to avoid certain races. Wether there’s any truth in these rumours or not, it is at the very least food for thought.
An organization can give the appearance that it is fighting doping without really having the ressources to give it a real fight. Quality before volume. Perhaps we should look a little deeper into that concept.
Wikipedia source, athletes suspended during the 2015 PanAm Games.
| Athlete | Nation | Sport | Prohibited substance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stephanie Bragayrac |  Paraguay |
Wrestling | Furosemide | |
| María Luisa Calle |  Colombia |
Cycling – Road and track | GHRP2 | |
| Astrid Camposeco |  Guatemala |
Weightlifting | Clenbuterol, boldenone | |
| Mario Mercedes Castillo |  Dominican Republic |
Baseball | Dimethylbutylamine | |
| Cinthya Domínguez |  Mexico |
Weightlifting | Oxandrolone | |
| Mauricio Fiol |  Peru |
Swimming | Stanozolol | |
| Nelson Gomez |  Puerto Rico |
Baseball | Boldenone | |
| Jesús González |  Venezuela |
Weightlifting | ||
| Christopher Guajardo |  Chile |
Athletics – Marathon | EPO | |
| Elverine Jimenez |  Nicaragua |
Wrestling | DHEA | |
| Patrick Mendes |  Brazil |
Weightlifiting | 4-Chlorodehydromethyltestosterone | |
| Sheila Ocasio | Puerto Rico |
Volleyball | Stanozolol | |
| Javier Jesus Ortiz Angulo | Colombia |
Baseball | Stanozolol | |
| Carlos Oyarzun | Chile |
Cycling – Road | FG-4592 | |
| Rene Silva Rios | Nicaragua |
Wrestling | Boldenone | |
| Luz Vázquez |  Argentina |
Wrestling | Hormone and metabolic modulator | |
| Merin Zalazar |  Honduras |
Boxing | Furosemide |