Famous Athletes Caught Doping
Because of the efforts made by the anti-doping sports committees,
there were already several famous athletes who were proven to be using
illegal substances to enhance their performance. As a result, they were
given proper actions such as being suspended from the game or being
banned and never to play again. Here are some of the popular athletes
who were caught doping.
Nina Kraft, a professional tri-athlete from Germany who used to be a
draughtswoman before she became professional. Aside from being an
athlete, she was also an artist as well. In an interview, she said that
making art is her way of relaxing and unwinding after a hard training
and practice. When the German Triathlon Federation conducted drug tests
among the athletes in its country in 2004, Nina Kraft was one of those
who were proven positive. Subsequently, she admitted that she really was
using Epoetin as her performance-enhancing drug. She was banned by the
German Triathlon Federation from running for about a year. It was only
last November 12, 2005 when the ban was lifted from Nina Kraft. On the
other hand, the World Triathlon Corporation banned Nina Kraft until
October 16, 2006. Until that time, Nina Kraft was not allowed to compete
at any of the Ironman events all over the world. The action made Nina
Kraft realized how important the sport is to her. She currently has a
drug-free sports life and trains in Florida. In 2007, Nina Kraft broke
the course record by twenty minutes having a record of 9:5:35. This made
her won the Ironman in Florida.
Track and field athletes are considered as one of the most pressured
athletes in the world. More often than not, they have the most strenuous
training and exercises in order to be competent for the upcoming events.
One of the athletes in this sport who was caught using
performance-enhancing drugs is the infamous Marion Lois Jones who later
changed her name to Marion Jones-Thompson when she married another
athlete, Obadele Thompson. In 2007, the BALCO or Bay Area Laboratory
Cooperative returned the result of Marion’s drug tests it revealed that
she was using drugs. Last year, she admitted that she used steroids
before the 2000 Sydney Summer Olympics began. Because of this, she was
banned from competing in the track and field for two years. Aside from
that, all of the medals that she won from the year 2000 up to 2007 were
taken from her. Her medals were not only forfeited but also the points,
prizes, and results that she got from the said period. During the first
quarter of 2008, Marion Jones was sentenced to six months in jail. The
jail sentence began last March 2008 and ended only last month, September
2008. Recently, she said that she would be retiring from the game.
Another athlete who was caught doping and was sanctioned is the baseball
player from Milwaukee Brewers organization, Jay Jonathan Gibbons. He is
not only an outfielder in the team but also played as the first base as
well. Most of his playing career was spent in the major leagues playing
for the Baltimore Orioles until his drug test results were released. It
was last 2006 when the first report about Jay Gibbons using anabolic
steroids was released. But the attorney of Gibbons said that the report
from LA Times were fully of inaccuracy. However, last September 2007, a
report from Sports Illustrated said that Jay Gibbons accepted several
shipments of steroids as well as human growth hormone from October 2003
up to July 2005. As a result, he was suspended and wasn’t able to play
during the first 15 games (2008 baseball season) starting from December
6, 2007. After a few days, Gibbons was included at the Mitchell Report
as one of the players using illegal substances. Although he was not
suspended, Gibbons gave very poor playing performances which resulted to
a contract cut-off. He tried writing to the various MLB clubs so that he
could play again for their team. But because of his ill-favored record,
it was only the Long Island Ducks who gave him another chance. It was
only last July 2008 when he signed a contract with the Milwaukee
Brewers. |
