Steroid Nation

Boston police involved in steroid scandal

Police everywhere appear to abusing steroids.  New York, Florida, Texas, Phoenix, Cleveland to name a few municipalities.  Now Boston police are involved in a steroid, drugs, and hooker scandal.

Police officers, like everyone else, sometimes behave badly. Eight officers were suspended after a three-year investigation into steroid use by the BPD, FBI and the U.S Attorney. Four other cops were suspended for visiting the "Boom Boom Room", a Hyde Park brothel. The steroid-related suspensions range from 5-80 days. The Herald said Commissioner Ed Davis confirmed a grand jury is investigating the "Boom Boom Room". Extensive details on both matters are available at BPDNews.com. [Boston Herald]

The Boston Herald carries more info:

The stepbrother of murder victim Imette St. Guillen is among seven decorated officers suspended without pay for admitting they previously abused steroids as far back as 2001, Boston Police Commissioner Edward F. Davis somberly announced yesterday.

“There’s an emerging trend in law enforcement regarding the use of steroids,” Davis said in culmination of a three-year internal probe. “Unfortunately, we were on the leading edge of this. Luckily, it’s not very widespread.”

This is how Usain Bolt rolls: World's fastest human knows ganja

USA Today discusses Usain Bolt's pharmacologic menu.  A little weed when he was younger; some Red Bull and ale now when he is older:

Turns out Olympic speedster Usain Bolt is not unfamiliar with the ganja.

Bolt, a triple gold medalist who set world records in the 100 and 200 meters in China, tried marijuana when he was young reports the German newspaper Bild

"In Jamaica, you learn as a child how to roll a joint. Everyone here has tried it. I did too -- but I was real young then," Bolt said. "My family and my friends don't smoke and I don't hang out any longer with people who smoke." (Photo by Mark Dadswell, Getty Images)

The story also said that Bolt has two bodyguards supplied by the Jamaican government and that he drinks Guinness mixed with Red Bull.

So will this change budding track stars training habits all over the world?  High rolling and lower times...

Wisconsin ex-orthopedic surgeon 'jumps' bail with stash of weapons, ammo, and steroids

Wisconsin orthopedic surgeon (or ex-surgeon) Mark Benson allegedly ingested a cocktail of Ambien, Xanax and Oxycodone prior to smashing into a another vehicle killing a grade school assistant principle, her unborn baby, and daughter, as well as injuring two others.  Out on 1,000,000 bail, this ex-doctor apparently harbored a cache of guns and 'roids.

Benson, the former orthopedic doctor charged with driving intoxicated and killing three and injuring two in an Oconomowoc crash last April, might just have added his mother and stepfather's $500,000 to the toll of damage.

The cash they posted as bail so he could await trial in the comfort of his $1.6 million property on Lower Nashotah Lake in Summit will be forfeited if prosecutors have their way.

It doesn't take a brain surgeon to know that when the judge sets conditions for bail - no guns and no doctor and pharmacy shopping, for example - you'd have to be an idiot to order a stash of drugs on the sly by mail and keep an arsenal of weapons in the house.

As just about anybody following this case knows, Benson landed back in jail last week on bail-jumping charges after investigators found three rifles, three handguns, eight switchblades, an estimated 20,000 to 50,000 rounds of ammunition and bottles of steroids delivered by mail order from a Florida "pharmaceuticals" company...

The man is already a pariah - accused of being high on prescription drugs, his license revoked for a third drunken driving conviction days earlier, when he smashed his Cadillac SUV into the rear of Jennifer Bukosky's car just as her traffic signal turned green.

In addition to Bukosky, 39, the crash killed her unborn child and her 10-year-old daughter, Courtney, and seriously injured Courtney's friend and her brother.

The source of the drugs?  A Florida mail-order 'pharmacy'.

The package was from Glenn Stephanos at Palm Beach Pharmaceuticals in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.

A year ago, Stephanos and his brother agreed to testify against others and escaped prison time for selling steroids and human growth hormone over the Internet in a nationwide distribution ring that incriminated at least 24 people in New York and Florida, including high-profile sports figures.

Draw your own conclusions.

Anabolic steroids and painkillers in home of Andrew "Test" Martin

We are not huge fans of the WWE, to say the least.  It took a few minutes to get up to speed when our man Sal M (Blog Critics) emailed that a pro wrestler named Andrew Martin died very young the other day.

Authorities say former professional wrestler Andrew Martin, who was known as "Test" and "The Punisher" to fans, has died at his Tampa home. He was 33.

The former World Wrestling Entertainment champion was found dead at his apartment Friday night. Police say a neighbor reported that she could see into his apartment window and that Martin appeared motionless for several hours.

The St. Petersburg Times reported -- surprise -- authorities uncovered anabolic steroids and painkillers at the deceased wrestler's house.  It is very interesting that Martin kept deep ties with the first family of the WWE, the Vince McMahon crew...even when the WWE released the wrestler as the result of a spinal wrestling injury.

As “Test”, Martin was involved in a love triangle with Stephanie McMahon (the owner Vince McMahon’s daughter) and Triple H (the wrestler who has been married to Stephanie McMahon for years) which was one of the top story lines in WWE history.

Today would have been Andrew Martin's birthday -- 34.

The professional wrestler known as "Test" or the "Punisher" planned to leave Monday to celebrate in France, Sweden and Belgium, according to his MySpace page.

But authorities found his body Friday night at about 8 o'clock. And officers have since disclosed that they discovered prescription drugs, including painkillers and steroids, in the Harbour Place apartment.

A neighbor had become suspicious after watching him lie motionless on a couch for hours and called police. It appeared Mr. Martin was in the middle of a meal when he died, said police spokeswoman Laura McElroy. There was a half-eaten pizza and soda nearby.

Officers do not suspect foul play. There were no signs of trauma to Mr. Martin, she said. "He was obviously very healthy, McElroy said. The mystery of his death will likely be solved by his toxicology report.

First, anytime a person passes away, it is sad; condolences to the family.  However, an informed observer will note the string of dead wrestlers, including the spectacular Chris Benoit, most with a string of steroids, HGH, painkillers, and other drugs.

Positive cocaine test: Lebanese skier Georges Salameh claims saboteurs snowed urine sample

Lebanese skier Georges Salameh says sinister nasty enemies sabotaged his urine sample from a ski meet last month  That blows.  The New York Daily News carries the tale.

Lebanese ski racer Georges Salameh, who provided a urine sample containing traces of cocaine during last month's Alpine skiing world championships in France, blames his positive test on the work of mysterious saboteurs.

"I have enemies in Lebanon who may have pushed people to do this," Salameh said. "I never used these drugs. I don't know what happened."

The skier claims he was intoxicated the night before the race.  As if that excuses it all:

In an interview with the Daily News Friday, Salameh repeatedly claimed he was extremely drunk at a nightclub in the early morning hours before he provided his tainted sample on Feb. 12.

Salameh said he was approached by strangers while partying at Doudoune, a nightclub in Val d'Isere, a small and vibrant ski town nestled deep in the French Alps at the head of a dramatic glacial valley.

"I was so drunk," Salameh said, "and someone came to me and said I have something for you that will help. Really, I was so f---ing drunk and I took it."

Great pre-race training.  It get better though:

Salameh could not describe the substance he was given. The president of the Lebanese ski federation, Tony Kouhri, told the Daily News on Thursday that Salameh was handed a pill.

"A man who speaks Arabic came to me and said I have something that will wake you up," Salameh said. "I have a lot of enemies. Not just me, but the federation."

Salameh was out until dawn, but just after 10 a.m. he was scheduled to start 82nd of 105 racers in a special qualification race for the giant slalom. The qualification races are for low-ranked skiers representing their countries at the world championships.

After that race, Salameh told an Austrian reporter that he didn't feel good and hadn't slept. "I drank vodka and ate fish at 5:00 a.m," Salameh told the reporter from the Austrian Press Agency. "This was probably not a good idea."

No wonder this guy participates in a race for low-ranked skiers.

Batman -- John C. Oden -- minor league pitcher traded for bats, ends up broken

John C. Odom, the minor league pitcher traded for 10 bats, ended his life in Georgia more broken than any discarded bat in the clubhouse.  Odem, apparently hit right in the trademark by the fluky bat trade story, ended up overdosed and dead in Georgia of a mixed drug overdose (NBC News).

The medical examiner said Odom’s death in Georgia on Nov. 5 at age 26 was an accidental overdose from heroin, methamphetamine, the stimulant benzylpiperazine and alcohol.

The NBC story documents his life: pitcher in the Giants system, guitarist, free spirit, broken spirit.  Once rooming with Giants pitcher Tim Linecum who commented 'It really is sad".

Odom’s death had drawn little notice by the start of spring training this year. Now, former teammates, managers and club officials keep asking a question for which there is no satisfying answer.

“I guarantee this trade thing really bothered him. That really worried me,” said Dan Shwam, who managed Odom last year on the Laredo Broncos of the United League. “I really believe, knowing his background, that this drove him back to the bottle, that it put him on the road to drugs again.”

Shwam added: “There were some demons chasing him, they’d been after him for a long time. But there’s no way to really know whether the trade did it, is there?”

At first, Odom seemed to handle it well. He gladly agreed to interviews. He kidded about the kooky deal and said it would make a better story if he reached the majors someday.

Odem witnessed trouble during his life.  He was known as a long-haired guitar-playing loose hanging flake, with talent, but troubles.  After the bat trade, troubles magnified:

On June 5 in Amarillo, the “Batman” theme played while Odom warmed up for Laredo, and he tipped his cap to the sound booth. But he was battered for eight runs in 3 1-3 innings and mercilessly taunted by the crowd. Shwam went to the mound.

“The chants, the catcalls, they were terrible. I had to get him out of there for his own good. He was falling apart, right in front of our eyes,” Shwam said.

When Shwam noticed Odom becoming more withdrawn, he called a team meeting. The message: No more talking about the trade or the bats by anyone.

Odom pitched five good innings at San Angelo on June 10 in what turned out to be his third and last start. On the bus after the game, Odom said he needed to speak with Shwam the next day.

“He came in and said, ’Skip, I’m going home. I just can’t take it. I’ve got some things to take care of. I’ve got to get my life straightened out,”’ Shwam recalled. 

And with that, Odom disappeared.

Oden joins Angel pitcher Donnie Moore -- who could not live with the indignity of giving up a pennant losing home run -- on the mortality list.  Sometimes sports, misfortune, and street drugs don't mix.

1904 Olympic marathon winner Thomas Hicks kicked off modern era of doping with strychnine

The Boston Globe - perhaps jealous of all the publicity New York is receiving from the R-Roid scandals -- claims some Boston area fame today with a story on the infamous 1904 Olympic doping scandal.  Thomas Hicks, a Cambridge area athlete, doped with strychnine for the Olympic marathon.  Using a potent poison like strychnine sounds dangerous, however in the limited world of doping with stimulants, the compound represented one avenue of gaining an advantage over competitors.  Athletes never looked back from there.

While the media currently fixate on a pinstriped athlete from New York, it was a skinny townie from Cambridge whose chemically enhanced victory in the 1904 Olympic Marathon first sparked widespread debate about drugs in sports.

For athletes in the 21st century, the elixir of choice is steroids. More than 100 years ago, Thomas J. Hicks opted for a vile concoction of egg whites and brandy laced with strychnine, the active ingredient in rat poison.

And the scoop on strychnine:

And while reputed performance boosters from this era range from frighteningly dangerous to downright laughable, it was the supportive attitude of the American public that is most shocking.

"Back in those days, the use of performance-enhancing substances was not the awful thing it is today," said Daniel M. Rosen, the author of "Dope: A History of Performance Enhancement in Sports from the Nineteenth Century to Today."

Rosen said it was not Hicks's chemical consumption that caused the 1904 controversy. Rather, the outrage stemmed from the strychnine cocktails not being available to all Olympic runners in the searing, 90-degree heat.

"Hicks was kind of a hero for doing everything he could to win," Rosen said. "But he damn near killed himself in the process."

Strychnine doping continued after the leap...

Benoit's doctor -- Dr. Phil Astin -- pleads guilty on perscription abuse charges

Dr. Phil Astin, who supplied Chris Benoit steroids and HGH among other drugs -- pleaded guilty to 175 charges of illegal prescription drug distribution.  Benoit, the WWF wrestler suffering from concussions, drug abuse (anabolic steroids, HGH, narcotics, benzodiazepines, alcohol) killed his son, wife, and himself on a weekend rage rampage in 2007.

To WSBRadio:

The former doctor of pro wrestler Chris Benoit has changed his plea to guilty.

Dr. Phil Astin entered the new plea to a 175 count indictment in court on Thursday.

The indictment charges Astin with conspiracy and illegal distribution of prescription drugs.  The charges are not related to the 2007 of Benoit, his wife and the wrestler's son.

Benoit was taking anabolic steroids when he killed his family and then himself in their Fayette County home.

Astin's attorney portrays him as a country doctor willing to bend a few rules to try to ease his clients aches and pains.

Astin will be sentenced in May. 

Rugby star Matt Stevens positive for cocaine

The rugby athletes -- the guys with leather balls -- occasionally test positive for foreign substances.  England's rugby star Matt Stevens tested positive for cocaine following a December match, which earns him a possible 2 year suspension.

Interesting that cocaine, a recreational drug, will be treated as a PED.  The drug is a stimulant, but likely wasn't used that way as it is basic that testing picks up the drug easily.

The London Times reported the Steven's catch first; The Sun follows up with more details.

ENGLAND rugby star Matt Stevens wept yesterday after testing positive for cocaine and admitted: “It’s ruined my life.”

The 26-year-old prop confessed to having a “drug problem” as he was removed from the elite squad and suspended by his club Bath.

Matt said: “It’s pretty distressing talking about this. When you think about how much time people have put into my career — and I’ve thrown it away.

“It’s a very serious substance and something I’ve realised I have an issue with. I truly, truly am very sorry.”

South African-born Matt did not say which drug he took. But The Sun has learned he tested positive for cocaine in a random test after last month’s Heineken Cup clash with Glasgow Warriors.

Matt won fans off the pitch when he was runner-up in ITV’s X Factor: Battle of the Stars in 2006.

He faces a two-year match ban, ruining his hope of playing for the British and Irish Lions in South Africa this summer. Matt, who played in the 2007 World Cup, told Sky Sports he had begun drug counselling.

Ricky Davis did not do steroids...Ricky says

Everyone wants to know...did NBA bad boy Ricky Davis sit for a steroids suspension?  (at least we want to know)

Davis, a former Iowa Hawkeye player we knew since he was in high school, sat out a number of games for the Los Angeles Clippers after violating the leagues 'anti-drug policy'. Was the suspension steroids or PED related?

  To LA-NBC:

The injury struggles of the Clippers have been the major story for this team over (at least) the last 12 games or so. Playing without Baron Davis, Zach Randolph, and Chris Kaman, it's no surprise that L.A.'s losing streak has reached that number, and with the team being so depleted, we also shouldn't be surprised that they'd welcome back someone like Ricky Davis.

Davis made his return to the floor Wednesday night against the Hawks, and played like someone who hadn't been on the NBA hardwood since November 22nd -- which he hadn't. Besides the fact that Davis was recovering from a knee injury, he also had to serve a five-game suspension for violating the league's anti-drug policy.

Inquiring minds are dying somewhat interested to know exactly what substance led to the violation and suspension.  One of L.A.'s few reporters on the scene got the answer:

When asked if he'd tested positive for a banned substance or merely failed to comply  with the league's drug program (either by missing a test or some other violation) Davis indicated that he'd tested positive but added, "No steroids.''

Draw your own conclusions.

And how did Davis perform on his comeback?

Meanwhile, on the court, Davis played 16 minutes, and contributed just two points, two rebounds, and two assists. Unfortunately for the Clippers, the less than stellar numbers probably aren't due to being rusty; Davis wasn't so great before the injury (or the suspension) either. He's averaged just four points per game in 20 minutes on the floor, while shooting a dismal 27 percent from the field this season.

Just maybe Ricky should do steroids...brain steroids.  From the photo on the right, doesn't look like Ricky needs more male steroids...

Mickey Rourke juiced up for role in 'The Wrestler'; Actor hints strongly of steroids

Using steroids in preparing for a movie about a washed-up professional wrestler?  Innovative.  And recruit an actor known for drug and alcohol abuse to play the protagonist?  Interesting.

Actor Micky Rourke's art apparently mimics real life in his role as a age professional wrestler in 'The Wrestler'.  Appears he admits to roiding it up for the movie role.  To the New York Daily News:

Mickey Rourke really did those backflips and rope dives in “The Wrestler,” but probably not without a little help. Though he doubled his daily 80-minute workouts with an Israeli cage fighter and ate seven meals a day, Men’s Journal reports that he most likely took steroids. 

When asked, Rourke said: “When I’m a wrestler, I behave like a wrestler.”

Behaving like a wrestler would mean getting on the juice, along with some other stuff.

In the past Rourke spent time as a bodybuilder, and a boxer.  He knows about the 'program'.  He looks to be in pretty good shape for a 56 year-old hard-livin' actor.

NASCAR will begin steroid testing in January

NASCAR saw PED use blow up last year.  The racing organization revealed driver Aaron Fike fired up with heroin before he took to the track.  Later, champion Ron Hornaday said he used testosterone (possibly HGH) to treat a thyroid condition.  NASCAR drivers expressed concern, and now NASCAR will initiate dope testing in 2009.  (AP)

NASCAR will test drivers for performance-enhancing drugs next month under a tougher policy that also bans using illegal drugs and abusing prescription medications.

NASCAR likely will test drivers the third week of January, and crew members must submit results from an approved lab by Jan. 16, according to documents obtained Thursday by The Associated Press.

A NASCAR memo sent to teams lists specific banned substances for which crew members must be screened. No similar guidelines were issued for drivers, as NASCAR reserves the right to test competitors for anything.

Under the old policy, NASCAR had the right to randomly test based on suspicion of abuse. Under the tougher guidelines first announced in September, everyone will be tested before the season begins, and random testing will continue throughout the year. NASCAR expects to randomly test 12 to 14 individuals per series each weekend in 2009.

The guidelines were strengthened in part because of former Truck Series driver Aaron Fike's admission that he had used heroin — even on days he raced. That led Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick and other veteran drivers to call on NASCAR to add random drug testing to its policy.

The memo, dated Dec. 8, is the first time the new policy has been laid out in writing and specifies who falls under the guidelines. Those who must be tested before Jan. 16 include: pit crew members, including "over-the-wall" crew members, the crew chief, car chief, team members responsible for tires, fuel and pit crew operation, spotters and race-day support personnel that includes engineers, engine tuners, shock specialists, chassis specialists and tire specialists.

Sounds like a comprehensive testing regime.  Here are the drugs included:

_ Seven different amphetamines, including methamphetamine and PMA, a synthetic psychostimulant and hallucinogen.

_ Three drugs classified under ephedrine.

_ 13 different narcotics, including codeine and morphine.

_ Ten different benzodiazepines and barbiturates.

_ Marijuana, cocaine, zolpidem, nitrites, chromates and drugs that can increase specific gravity.

No such list exists for the drivers, but spokesman Ramsey Poston confirmed NASCAR will test for performance-enhancing drugs.

The driver testing, which will be administered by NASCAR, had been scheduled for preseason testing at Daytona next month. But because testing has been suspended for 2009, NASCAR likely will screen drivers when most are in Charlotte next month for the annual media tour of race shops.

Interesting that there are no published guidelines for the real stars of the circuit -- the drivers.

UFC MMA fighter Justin Levens 'The Executioner' and wife found dead in possible murder-suicide

A family member discovered Mixed martial arts (Ultimate fighting ) competitor Justin Levins and his wife, Sarah Mclean Levens, dead of a gunshot wound in Laguna Niguel California yesterday.  Autopsies are pending on the duo, although press reports indicate a strong possibility of murder-suicide.  To the LA Times:

Authorities today are investigating the deaths of mixed martial arts fighter Justin Levens and his wife -- discovered shot in bed in their Laguna Niguel condominium -- as a possible murder-suicide, with Levens as the potential the shooter.

Justin Levens, 28, and Sara McLean-Levens, 25, were discovered about 2:30 p.m. Wednesday by McLean-Levens' mother, who had not heard from her daughter in five days, said Orange County Sheriff's Department Spokesman Jim Amormino. The bodies had apparently been in the home for at least a few days.

Autopsies are being performed this morning, in addition to ballistics and residue testing, Amormino said. No suicide note was found, but investigators recovered a handgun at the scene.

"Nothing has been ruled out," Amormino said of the case.

Levens was convicted in 2003 of spousal injury, according to Orange County Superior Court records.

He was a former Ultimate Fighting Championship and World Extreme Cagefighting participant, but hadn't fought since 2006. One of his losses that year was to Evan Tanner, who died on a desert trip this year.

Levens went on to fight in the defunct International Fight League, and MMA website Sherdog.com reports his last fight came earlier this year in Lemoore.

Always when considering this type of fighter, aggressiveness, steroids, alcohol, and drugs should be considered.  This report synthesized all including references to the homi-suicide of Chris Benoit and family.  Interesting that the MMA competitors seem to meet untimely deaths, as noted in Levens's opponent and even teammate (look like fine upstanding citizens squaring off there below right).

Wrestling is a sport that has brutal action, and often an even more brutal aftermath for fighters. Mixed martial arts, which is becoming a powerful alternative to wrestling, appears to be no different. Drugs, steroids and a bad mental state outside the ring may be just as prominent in mixed martial arts. That may have been the case for former competitor Justin Levens, who is suspected to have killed himself after killing his wife.

According to UPI.com, the murdered bodies of Justin Levens and his wife, Sarah McLean Levens, were found by Sarah's mother at their California home. Police are investigating that the likely cause of death was a murder-suicide committed by Justin Levens.

Levens was a competitor in the UFC and the International Fight League, although his career was on hold. Levens, after going 9-8 in his mixed martial art fighting career, was suspended from competition after testing positive for drugs in July.

Levens tested positive for oxymorphone, which has up to eight times the potency of morphine. He was suspended for six months and fined $1,000, but he was eligible to return to mixed martial arts in January 2009.

It is unclear if Levens, a veteran of the U.S. Navy and a Ruas Vale Tudo black belt holder, continued to use drugs and performance enhancements leading up to his death. But Levens has fallen into a huge stereotype of being a wrestler and martial arts performer who died of violent causes outside the ring.

Levens himself had a teammate named Jeremy Williams, who died of a suspected self-inflicted gunshot wound in May 2007.

One of the most famous recent examples of a wrestler in a murder-suicide is Chris Benoit. In 2007, Benoit killed himself after killing his wife and son. Benoit was a former WWE wrestler who had brain damage after leaving the ring, and was suspected to be on steroids during the murders.

Tabloid Edition carries full references of the incident.  Levens's nickname was The Executioner, which ends up being pretty eerie. Here is a quote from his facebook entry:

"through the destruction of our enemys.do we earn our salvation"

Italian skier Mirko DeFlorian claims he was framed for cocaine; Now in running for Ben Johnson award

Now in competition for the Ben Johnson 'It was Sabotage" award is Italian skier Mirko Deflorian who claims his urine sample was spiked with cocaine. (Makfaxonline)

Italian skier Mirko Deflorian has been banned for 18 months by the Italian Olympic Committee following a positive test for cocaine.

Cocaine metabolites were found in Deflorian's system following the test made a day after Deflorian won the giant slalom title.

"Somebody must have framed me, I have never used cocaine or any other drugs," Deflorian said after the positive test was made public.

No word on if Carl Lewis spiked the skier's punch  (Johnson blamed Carl Lewis, among others, over the years).

Wednesday Steroid Briefs

1. Manchester rugby player Marshall Gadd suspended for Winstrol.  (Stockport Express)

2. Former Michigan football player Rondell Biggs cleared of steroid charges when prosecutor could not prove steroids were his.  (Mlive.com)

3.  Italian skier Mirko Deflorian has been banned for 18 months by the Italian Olympic Committee following a positive test for cocaine. (Makfaxonline)

Darrius Miles -- NBA player inactive for 2 years -- would be suspended 10 games in comeback

Incredible as it sounds, an NBA player -- inactive now since 2006 -- would sit out the first 10 games of 2008-9 if he is added to a roster even as a last ditch option.

Darius Miles, who last saw action in the 2006 NBA season before a career-ending injury throttled him, is being considered by the desperate Memphis Grizzlies.  However Miles still owes the NBA 10 games On he suspended list for an unnamed steroids policy violation.  To Hoops World:

Darius Miles signed a minimum-salary contract with the Memphis Grizzlies, according to a report from Yahoo! Sports on Saturday.

Citing an anonymous source, the web site said that the Grizzlies inked the 27-year-old Miles after considering D-League options to fill an open roster spot.  Memphis had room after trading point guard Javaris Crittenton to the Washington Wizards on Wednesday.

Miles, who reportedly also worked out for the Los Angeles Clippers, has not played an NBA regular-season game since April 15, 2006, thanks to a right knee injury.

In fact, Miles was waived by the Portland Trail Blazers last season when an independent doctor deemed his injury career-ending.  The Blazers, as a result, were allowed to remove the $18 million that was owed to Miles over two seasons from their salary cap.

The ruling allowed Portland to become a threat in the summer of 2010, when a bevy of superstars - including LeBron James - hit the free-agent market.

However, according to the report, the Blazers again would be saddled with the money if Miles plays in 10 games this season.  The forward will be suspended for the first 10 games he is on a team's active roster after violating the league's anti-doping policy.

The third overall pick in the 2000 draft by the Clippers, Miles was drafted out of high school and has averaged 10.7 points and 5.2 rebounds in parts of six seasons with three teams.

He spent training camp with the Boston Celtics this season but was waived before the start of the campaign.

Steroid use appears to be rare in the NBA.  The record indicates only 3 players earned suspensions due to violation of the NBA's steroid policy (despite this incorrect answer online):

• Matt Geiger , 2001
• Don MacLean, 2000
• Soumaila Samake (Lakers)

Like many pro athletes the basketball players blamed supplements:

Los Angeles Lakers backup center Soumaila Samake was suspended for five games by the NBA on Tuesday for violating the league's steroids policy.

Samake, 24, a native of Mali in his third NBA season, will not be paid during the suspension, which began with Tuesday night's game against Atlanta.

The league and the NBA Players Association do not disclose details regarding the testing or treatment of players in the program, but Samake issued a statement saying he had taken a dietary supplement that contained Nandrolone, a substance banned by the NBA.

Charles Barkley didn't think McLean juiced up:

Charles Barkley has the most famous two-liner about steroids and the NBA. When journeyman Don MacLean tested positive in 2000, Barkley stuck up for the former UCLA star.

He tried to, anyway.

"Don MacLean?" Barkley said on TNT, "I've seen Don MacLean naked, and he doesn't use steroids."

MacLean was 6-foot-10 and 235 pounds, not exactly brimming with an A-list, body-building frame. He spent most of his nine-year career working through injuries after winning the Most Improved Player Award his sophomore season.

A guy with that build couldn't possibly be on steroids, Barkley joked, but he easily could have reached an opposite conclusion.

There was a question of Memphis forward Chris Anderson's use of 'roids, however he was booted from the league on his first public violation, which indicates something hard like heroin or amphetamines.

Congress investigated NBA steroids by interviewing Juan Dixon.  Juan Dixon?  Because he knew the drive to Capital Hill? 

The Hill dressed down David Stern, who redid the steroid policy to implement a huge 10 game suspension for a first AAS violation.

If Miles used steroids, it certainly hasn't been broadcast widely.  The use of anabolic steroids seems not to be in the NBA culture.  As a Laker blogger attests, most trainers have to drag their players into the weight room:

With all the recent hubub of steroids in baseball, it's not surprising that the NBA wants to proactively deflect any potential suspiscion of steroid use amongst its players.  A recent article by Marc Stein, Stern On Steroids: 'It's Not a Problem We Think We Have,' talks to a couple of NBA players around the league who state that steroids are not really an issue.  These players explain that basketball players want to remain nimble, quick, lean - they aren't looking to pack on muscle, muscle that will only render them a quick slower and reduce their overall stamina.

Memphis' Shane Battier echoed Massenburg's assertion that steroids are unlikely to appeal to NBA players – now or in the future – when weight training appeals to so few.

"Something you've got to understand is that basketball players just don't like to lift weights," Battier said. "Most of us would rather be out playing ball. We all grew up either on the playground or in the gym. If we're going to spend time working on our game, we're going to be on the court."

Although some fans suggest NBA players could abuse HGH, we know of no NBA player to abuse growth hormone (unless naturally from their own mutant pituitary).  The NBA players association will not even hear of HGH testing.

Asian drug ring busted in Australia with ecstasy & steroids

Again emphasizing the common criminals who import any number of drugs into cash paying countries, a large Asian drug smuggling ring went down in Australia yesterday.  From the New South Wales Govt:

Five men and a youth are due to face court today following their arrest during an alleged drug sting in a city hotel room, which resulted in police seizing thousands of ecstasy tablets.

The men — aged 20, 21 and 24 — were surrounded by Tactical Operation Unit officers and arrested shortly after 2.30pm yesterday during an alleged drug deal to supply 30,000 ecstasy tablets, worth an estimated potential street value of $1.5 million.

The arrests triggered a series of raids across Sydney’s west and south-west, with search warrants being executed at homes in Parramatta, Lidcombe, Merrylands, Campsie, Denistone and Rydalmere.

Two other men, aged 20 and 26, and a 17-year-old youth, were arrested at homes in Rydalmere, Strathfield and Denistone and taken into custody for questioning.

During yesterday’s operation, officers will allege they seized 2000 ecstasy tablets, with an estimated potential street value of $100,000.

An additional 600 ecstasy tablets, as well as a quantity of steroids and a large amount of cash, was seized during the execution of the search warrants.

Meanwhile, during the two-month investigation, officers will allege they seized a further 4000 ecstasy tablets.

Police allege all the men are connected with an organised Asian crime network trafficking in illicit drugs in the Sydney CBD.

All six people have been charged overnight with supply large commercial quantity of a prohibited drug and ongoing supply of a prohibited drug.

This particular ring sells ecstasy as well as steroids. 

Yesterday’s arrests are the result of an inquiry by Strike Force Investigator, comprising officers from the Central Metropolitan Region Enforcement Squad (RES).

Central Metropolitan RES Commander, Detective Inspector Gavin Wood, said the drug syndicate had supplied thousands of ‘teddy bear’ and pink heart-shaped ecstasy tablets to police during the course of the operation.

“Our investigation revealed this syndicate was capable of sourcing and supplying very large amounts of prohibited drugs on a regular basis,” Detective Inspector Wood said.

“We have intercepted thousands of pills that were ultimately destined for the streets of Sydney.”

Interesting that experts list MDMA and steroids are among the least harmful of the street drugs (graphic)

20% of Greek kids/young adults would use performance enhancing drugs

In a sample of Greek adolescent and young adults, 20% say they would cheat with PEDs/steroids if the drug would improve their physique; eleven percent of males said they would use PEDs if a coach recommended it.  To Ekathimerini

Almost two in 10 young people who take part in sports would use banned substances if it helped their physique, according to a survey conducted by a new nongovernmental organization.

Neoi questioned 700 people aged between 13 and 28 and found that 3 percent of them admitted to taking banned substances, which included ecstasy, cocaine, creatine and various anabolic steroids.

However, 11 percent of the males who were questioned said that they would take a banned substance if their coach recommended it. Half of all the respondents said that the main danger in taking steroids is that they could cause an early death, while 46 percent said that the media is their main source of information about banned substances.

Greece has had more than 20 athletes in various sports banned this year after they failed drug tests.

This article doesn't make the questions clear, however the 3% of Greeks taking one of a variety of drugs appears low when compared with other surveys.  Perhaps the question was related to athletic achievement?

Pumped up on the Playground: Swiss schools may ban energy drinks

Swiss solons see energy drinks as a threat to student's health and welfare.  Apparently Swiss youngsters are hyperventilating in school...and it's not the teachers causing the problems.

Fearing strung out students and disorder in the classroom, certain schools in Switzerland have placed restrictions or outright prohibitions on energy drinks.Now Toni Bortoluzzi, a politician on parliament's social security and health committee, has called on authorities around the country to ban the fizzy drinks.

"Stimulating beverages should be banned in all schools, even vocational schools," he told the Sonntag newspaper. "There must be no more hyperventilating pupils in classrooms."The Swiss People's Party parliamentarian has likened energy drinks to a quasi-drug.

"Smoking pot is also not tolerated," he argued, but said he did not intend to take up the matter in parliament. Instead he urged school authorities, municipalities and cantons to intervene.  Bortoluzzi has received the support of the Swiss Federation of Cantonal Chemists, a body responsible for food safety."This goes in the direction of doping," the group's president, Peter Grütter, said of the beverages, which can include caffeine, ginseng, ginkgo bilboa and sugar.

(Original article here)

Interesting that Tom Hildebrandt at Mt. Sinai presents data that there are pathways to steroids use, some of which may be health supplements.  More:

Caffeine

One can of Red Bull, the world's most popular brand, contains about as much caffeine as a cup of coffee and youngsters are having problems moderating themselves, says a school headmaster from Gerzensee, in canton Bern.

"Some students come with packs of ten Red Bulls and drink two or three right there," he said. Energy drinks are banned there, and in the town of Neuendorf, south of Basel

Did Marion Jones start her long slide into doping with Red Bull?

Are doctors using performance enhancing drugs?

An article from the the Sacramental Bee, by Dr. Michael Wilkes, looks at the use of 'stimulants' and PEDs for physicians.

Doctors have long prescribed pills to help people concentrate, stay awake, go to sleep, remember facts, control their moods and enhance endurance in such tasks as flying and studying.

Now, doctors are also using these drugs – not to correct abnormalities but to enhance their abilities.

Advertisements for Provigil and other drugs promise that they will help doctors stay awake.   

The practice of medicine requires long hours, constant learning and a high level of dedication. Physicians work at all hours of the day and night, making life-and-death decisions.

Don't patients benefit if doctors take pills that will help them stay awake during a long overnight shift in the emergency room or provide better concentration to a surgeon doing a 10-hour operation?

Dr. William Cheshire, writing in the journal Virtual Mentor, asserts that the field of medicine has traditionally drawn a line between treatment (to restore or preserve vital functions) and enhancement (to provide abilities that go beyond normal function).

If the practice of medicine has been devoted to treatment, does that preclude doctors from dealing with enhancement? Certainly in some areas, such as plastic surgery, enhancement – not treatment – is the rule.

In some nonmedical fields, enhancement might provide a competitive and selfish advantage – e.g., working longer hours to impress the boss or taking steroids to beat other athletes.

I have spoken with doctors who feel that enhancing pills help protect their patients and society. For example, they ask, what if two patients urgently need surgery? Without a drug to stay awake, the surgeon could perform just one surgery. With medication, he could operate on one patient and then the other.

Wait a minute, though. Do we want doctors operating after they have taken these pills?

I have colleagues who say these pills are no different than a couple of cups of coffee – just a bit stronger. Is that true? What happens when the pills wear off, and what about the side effects?

There is little or no data on how these drugs affect a doctor's performance.

Until we have more data, doctors should not be allowed to take these medicines when on duty.

If doctors are tired, they should sleep. If they can't concentrate, they should explore why. Medicating our physician to work longer, harder and with superhuman concentration is just not in society's interest – at least not without substantial research.

   

As we say, one of the largest challenges in the new science age of the 21st century comes in determining the ethics behind performance enhancement: how far, how much, how moral.  This central question cuts across all ages, professions, and economic groups.

Tony Mandarich comes clean: Reveals narcotic and steroid use.

About 18 months ago we ran a feature on Ex-Michigan State lineman, and Ex-Green Bay Packer Tony Mandarich.  Mandarich graduated from Michigan State a huge athletic lineman, with incredible NFL promise.  He struggled in the NFL, which led to rumors of steroid use in college, or of an unknown infection resulting in deteriorating NFL performance.  Later, Mandarich became a solid lineman for the Indianapolis Colts -- a fact football fans forget.

Mandarich wrote us a very nice email, easily the most complementary email we have received in our short history.  We wished him good luck on his new endeavor -- glamor photography -- and moved on.

Now Mandarich will release a new autobiography where he details drug, alcohol and steroid use in college and the pros.  Here is a bit on the drug use at Michigan State:

Tony Mandarich, one of the most heralded offensive lineman in college football history, has admitted to to be addicted to pain killers and alcohol. Mandarich, who starred at Michigan State University and was the second pick in the NFL draft, says that he went so far to fake a urine test in college to play in the Rose Bowl. Mandarich also states in a new book that he used steroids in his seven year NFL career with the Green Bay Packers and Indianapolis Colts .

The big lineman also says he used the juice in the NFL:

“I used them (steroids),” he says on Showtime's 'Inside the NFL' show where he conducted an interview promoting his upcoming book "My Dirty Little Secrets -– Steroids, Alcohol and God.". “This is the first time I ever said it. … If I would have come out and said it, I think it would have affected a lot of other people that were doing the same things."

In the interview Mandarich says that the reason he didn't perform as well in the NFL was because he became addicted the pain killer Staydal. He said he was doing up to seven shots a day of the drug.

Mandarich always denied use of steroids; however he is no longer denying he juiced.  How do we feel about that?  Considering the pain these players go through, and the lax steroid control and testing back when Mandarich broke into the league, do we expect less than juiced linemen?  Mandarich strikes us as a good guy now, doing then what he needed to do to survive in D-1 college & NFL football.

Without giving Tony Mandarich a free pass, we point to the letter Ron Mix wrote to the San Diego Union-Tribune last week:

The history of Chargers' use of steroids in that era is undisputed: (1) Alvin Roy was hired as the first strength coach in professional football; (2) Alvin told the entire team that the pills (Dianabol) we would be taking would help us assimilate more protein (he did not say the product was steroids); (3) the team made it mandatory that all players take the pills with each meal; (4) when a teammate's doctor provided literature to him about Dianabol and its harmful side-effects and that information was shared with me, I, as team captain, called a team meeting and informed the team; (5) the vast majority or all of the players stopped taking the pills (I cannot identify a single player who continued).

What do we expect of a high profile player in the NFL, at a position where strength is a premium?  Look to the management, the trainers and doctors, and the administration of the league for answers.

Canadian wheelchair athlete Jeff Adams crashes out of the Beijing Paralympics

Canadian wheelchair athlete Jeff Adams's storied career took one more jolt Sunday night when he was disqualified from a wheelchair race at the Beijing Parlympics.  Adams qualified to move on in the games, however it was ruled he caused a tack accident that wiped out another competitor.  To the Vancouver Sun:

Quietly and under the radar - which is unusual for Jeff Adams - the red-haired, multi-tattooed, earring-adorned wheelchair racer from Brampton, Ont., left China on Monday a day after being disqualified in a heat of the T54 1,500 metres.

It was an inglorious end to Adams' long fight just to compete in Beijing. He spent a reported $750,000 to challenge a two-year suspension, overturned in May, for a positive cocaine test.

Racing late Sunday night, with no media around after wheelchair racer Chantal Petitclerc of Montreal had dazzled by winning  two golds 80 minutes apart, Adams ran a time in the second of five heats that was good enough to qualify for Tuesday evening's final.

But he was disqualified after he was ruled to have caused a crash that took out Yanfeng Cui of China and Alain Fuss of France. Canada appealed, but it was denied.

The 1,500 metres, the marquee event in wheelchair racing, was the only event Adams had entered.

Adams tends to be flamboyant in his actions, however this development has to be disappointing for the athlete.

Adams, 37, won two gold medals at the Sydney Paralympics and a bronze in Athens, where he famously wheeled backwards up the steps of the centuries old Parthenon to promote accessibility.

But his career appeared to have collapsed in shame when he tested positive for cocaine at the 2006 Canadian wheelchair marathon in Ottawa. He then became the object of ridicule when he claimed that an unknown woman had shoved cocaine into his mouth without permission while they were in a bar, leading to contamination of his dope-testing catheter.

Last May, after a lengthy and costly legal battle, the Court of Arbitration for Sport, lifted the two-year ban, saying it found Adams' story credible. The CAS made note of his "uncontroverted testimony and high character."

To then qualify for Beijing, Adams spent $8,000 of his own money to rent a track in Atlanta, hire certified officials and fly in his training partner Josh Cassidy and his South African rival, Ernst van Dyk. They ran two 1,500 races, with Adams recording the third fastest time of the year in one and going just under the Canadian qualifying standard in the other.

But the effort collapsed with Sunday's disqualification.

Payette said Adams flew home to Canada on Monday afternoon.

Perplexing politics in Plano: Bodybuilders given sentences for steroid use in the David Jacobs case, however police still on the beat

Pegasus News carries an interesting opinion piece on Texas justice in Plano.  As everyone recalls, local steroids dealer to the NFL, David Jacobs lived and died in Plano, after a steroid-infused late life.  Jacobs dealt the juice to at least on NFL player -- former Saint, Cowboys, and Falcons lineman Matt Lehr.  Jacobs also appears to have distributed 'roids to bodybuilders, and to local policemen.  Interestingly though, Jacobs and bodybuilder girlfriend Amanda Savell died under suspicious circumstances last summer (as noted below).

With disgraced sprinter Marion Jones heading home to Austin this week from a federal prison and the feds prosecuting amateur bodybuilders in Plano for steroid use, I continue to wonder with each new headline when the same level of attention will be focused on steroid use by police officers, particularly in the Plano case?

Steroid dealer David Jacobs and his bodybuilder girlfriend died under suspicious circumstances that police ruled a murder-suicide soon after he accused police officers from five Metroplex departments of being his customers. (Today's coverage inexplicably doesn't mention the police angle, but see these prior Grits posts and others linked below for background.)

It's a lot more important for public safety to ensure cops aren't using illicit steroids than is policing foot races or body building competitions, but you wouldn't know that by paying attention to state and federal enforcement priorities.

After Jacobs' death, no law enforcement agency disciplined any of his alleged police officer clients; of the five, only Dallas PD implemented steroid testing going forward. Otherwise, the officers Jacobs sold to have never been identified or disciplined, and are likely still on the force using illicit steroids.

In that light, there's a bold hypocrisy to pursuing amateur bodybuilders who were for the most part also merely Jacobs' clients. What's good for the goose is good for the gander. If they're prosecuting bodybuilders who bought steroids from Jacobs, the police officers who purchased from him should be pursued just as aggressively.

Good questions. The news story with the bodybuilders goes like this:

A federal judge sentenced two amateur bodybuilders involved in the Plano steroids trafficking conspiracy to three years probation today and postponed final judgment on the third and final defendant until next month.

Brandon Mark Smith, who lives in the Dallas area, and Jamie Mongeau, of Wichita, Kan., both received three years probation and $2,000 fines for their roles in the steroid network run by David Jacobs.

Mr. Jacobs killed himself and his former girlfriend in early June shortly after the same judge – U.S. District Judge Richard Schell – sentenced him to three years probation.

After he was arrested last year, Mr. Jacobs cooperated both with federal investigators and the National Football League in answering questions about his network – which spanned to China – and his dealings with two ex-Dallas Cowboys.

After meeting before court this morning with Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Williams and defense attorney Kent Schaffer, Judge Schell announced that he was postponing sentencing for the final defendant, Houston bodybuilder and personal trainer Juan Carlos Ballivian, until Oct. 15. No explanation was given.

During their sentencing hearings, both Mr. Smith and Mr. Mongeau told Judge Schell that their time spent on the amateur bodybuilding circuit led to their steroid use.

"I felt like I did what I had to do," Mr. Smith said. "Any person you see on stage in those competitions, even [California] governor [Arnold] Schwarzenegger, you can’t get to that size naturally. There’s not one of those people up there who doesn’t take performance enhancing drugs. I got wrapped up in the sport."

"You need to find something else to do," Judge Schell told him. Mr.  Smith agreed.      

Bud Selig would not have resigned: Japan's sumo wrestling boss Kitanoumi steps down over drug scandal

Quite a difference in cultures.  Bud Selig, captain of the ship when USA Major League Baseball cruised through a 'steroid era' continues in power and continues to rake in tens of millions of salary dollars.  Meanwhile a venerable Japanese sumo wrestler, presiding over the national sport reigns in disgrace when two Russian sumo wrestlers possess marijuana.  To the IHT for the summary:  (further update with the Guardian; the Russians were the first sumo wrestlers expelled for life)

Two popular Russian sumo wrestlers were slapped with lifetime bans from Japan's ancient national sport for allegedly using marijuana and the head of the Japan Sumo Association resigned Monday to take responsibility for the scandal, officials said.

The wrestlers, brothers Roho and Hakurozan, tested positive for the drug when the sport conducted its first drug tests following the last month of another Russian wrestler, Wakanoho, for marijuana possession.

The scandal has rocked the sumo world, which has its roots in religious ritual and tends to hold its athletes and officials to high moral standards. Marijuana possession is considered a serious offense in Japan, and the scandal has been front-page news.

High moral standards...not astronomical economic booties.

The punishment was handed out at an emergency meeting of top sumo officials Monday, according to the Japan Sumo Association.

Kitanoumi, the association's chairman and Hakurozan's mentor, also told the meeting that he would resign to take responsibility. Kitanoumi is a former grand champion wrestler who is considered by many to have been one of the best ever.

"It was my decision to resign," Kitanoumi said. He will be replaced by another former wrestler, Musashigawa.

Understand that Kitanoumi did nothing wrong.  He apparently believed  his sumo wrestlers -- considered men of honor -- about drug use.  However the standard of integrity he must  uphold were violated.

"I am filled with remorse because it was my responsibility to keep an eye on my wrestlers at all times," Kitanoumi, 55, told reporters. "They denied [smoking marijuana] and I believed them."

How different than Mr. who might be considered an enabler for drug use in the USA's MLB.

Drunken 'high' jumper Ivan Ukhov finds booze not equal to steroids

Russian high jumper Ivan Ukhov found that alcohol didn't improve performance in the high jump at the Athletissima meet.  Reportedly Ukhov downed Red Bull and booze during the meet, which did not improve his hops.  To IHT:

Track and field's ruling body wants Ivan Ukhov to explain his conduct at the Athletissima meet in which rival high jumpers said the Russian had been drinking vodka and Red Bull during the competition.

Ukhov failed with each attempt to clear the bar Tuesday before being asked to stop competing at the Swiss meet.

Ukhov was then stiffed by the meet organizers:

Meet organizers refused to pay Ukhov's expenses and have been asked to supply video evidence to the International Association of Athletics Federations.

"We will for sure ask for an explanation from the athlete about his behavior and ask that it is not repeated in the future," IAAF spokesman Nick Davies said in a statement.

Alcohol is not classed as a performance-enhancing substance and is not formally prohibited in athletics competition.

That Red Bull, however may launch performance into another caffeine-induced universe...

British 10,000m runner Kate Reed learns not to joke about drugs

Know how you cannot joke about bombs in an airport?  British 10,000K runner Kate Reed learned the hard way not to joke about drugs at the Olympics.  Her joke about morphine wasn't meant to be morfed into a problem; she found out that jokes about the 'sister' are not taken lightly. The Guardian tells us why:

The British 10,000m runner Kate Reed had her bedroom in Beijing searched on suspicion of possessing drugs, it has emerged. Reed, 25, finished 23rd at the Olympics and has blamed her performance on UK Athletics' insistence that she undertake a drugs and fitness test the day before the race after she had made a joke about using morphine to clear up an injury. It sparked the decision by British Olympic Association officials to search her room but no banned substances were found.

"Just two days before the 10,000m final she intimated to at least two members of the medical staff that she might take morphine to kill the pain," said UK Athletics in a statement. "It should be noted that this substance is on the banned list for in-competition testing.

"Both members of the medical team independently interpreted her comments to mean that she had morphine in her possession. Also, it should be noted that despite being asked on several occasions throughout the trip to declare her full range of medications, as is the norm, the athlete had failed to do so.

"Following discussions between UKA and the Chef de Mission, it was agreed that the athlete should undertake a doping test and her fitness be confirmed to alleviate further concerns."

Reed underwent a 2km fitness trial the evening before her 10,000m race. Reed said she had been talking to Neil Black, UKA's team physiotherapist, while having treatment. "I was not aware there were two medics there. We were just having a joke about my leg. I asked for a jab and we joked about taking morphine," said Reed yesterday.

Do not joke about morphine.  Do not joke about morphine.  Write that 100 times.

"It was said in jest. You would have to be rather stupid to [think] I wasn't joking. It wasn't until the next day at 10am that I was accused of carrying [morphine]. And I had not even said that in the first place.

"The doctor said he was in the room with me and Neil and said he overheard it. I said, 'For God's sake, it was hardly a sensible conversation and why didn't you ask me at the time?' "

The UK Athletics statement added: "Had the doping test, the room search and physical test not taken place to satisfy the various concerns around this case, Team GB would have been sending an athlete to the start line of an Olympic final with serious uncertainties and grave doubts."

As the Stones sang:

Here I lie in my hospital bed
Tell me, Sister Morphine, when are you coming round again?
Oh, I don't think I can wait that long
Oh, you see that I'm not that strong

Massive sumo scandal: Doping in Sumo wrestling growing like weed

The sumo wrestling world (was) rocked last night when two Russian practitioners tested positive for some reefer (the official WADA name for weed).  (IHT)

Roho and Hakurozan, who are brothers, tested positive after urine tests carried out on a total of 69 wrestlers. Shohei Onishi, an official on the Japan Sumo Association's anti-doping panel, announced the results Tuesday.

Damn Russians.  First they invade Georgia then start doping in Japanese Sumo wrestling. 

The tests were carried out after Russian wrestler Wakanoho was banned for life by the association and arrested by police for marijuana possession. Wakanoho's dismissal — the first expulsion of an active wrestler — was quickly announced after an emergency meeting of the JSA executive board.

The association did not immediately announce whether Roho and Hakurozan would be punished. The two were also being questioned by Tokyo police, according to a police official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the case was under investigation.

Japanese broadcaster NHK said Hakurozan had denied using marijuana.

Russians denied they messed with Georgia too.

Sumo wrestlers are held to a high standard of behavior, which has lead to some sticky situations lately:

Sumo culture is conservative and its wrestlers are generally held to a high moral standard.

Last year, grand champion Asashoryu was given a two-tournament suspension after claiming an injury and missing summer tour events, only to be shown later on television playing football in his native Mongolia.

In 2000, Japanese wrestler Toki hit and killed a pedestrian while driving in Osaka. He was suspended for only one tournament.

Roho and Hakurozan may be in more hot water after their high times:

Under Japan's Cannabis Control Law, possession of marijuana is punishable by up to five years in prison. Foreigners convicted of drug crimes can also be deported and given a lifetime re-entry ban.

UFC Fighter James Irvin shows steroids aren't the only PED

UFC fighter James Irwin threw a loaded urine after a recent Nevada fight...only not loaded for steroids (Bleacher Report ) but loaded with narcotics.

It also had to do with another flight during which he (Irvin) was on the illegal drug oxymorphone (a narcotic painkiller for extreme pain). James also tested positive for methadone (a synthetic form of heroin given to addicts to relieve withdrawing symptoms).

The report mentions 'recovery'.  Masking pain isn't a good idea for recovery.  Rest would be a better idea, to give the bones and tissues time to heal.  Time to heal appears not to be ideal for the pocketbook of the owners, and athletes these days.  But opioid drugs aren't a great option, either, especially when alertness might be a bit important in an MMA fight.  (oxymorphone is Numorphan)

Eleven of the 22 fighters who competed on the card were tested at the event. Anderson Silva, James Irvin, Hermes Franca, Cain Velasquez, Brandon Vera, CB Dollaway, Tim Credeur, Frankie Edgar, Shannon Gugerty, and Nate Loughran all were tested for steroids, drugs of abuse, and stimulants.

Irvin was the only competitor who tested positive for a banned substance.

He has been temporarily suspended pending a disciplinary hearing with the NSAC. The regulatory body could vote to revoke his licensure for a yet-to-be determined length of time and/or fine him for the alleged infractions. A date for the hearing has not been set.

Irvin had broken his foot in May while preparing for a match against Rashad Evans. It is probable that he was using these drugs to speed his recovery for the Silva fight. Irvin's manager said that he was unaware of the allegations. Neither Dana White nor Irvin himself has commented on the issue yet.

Czech archer Milan Andreas tests positive for marijuana, hehe

One might question if marijuana (or THC) really can enhance performance.  However, one group of athletes that should stay away from that substance would be archers.  No want stoned archers shooting arrows in the air for fun.

Czech archer Milan Andreas tested positive for THC; he may be munching down snacks rather than aiming at bulls-eyes in Beijing. (NY Times)

HARSH BUZZ KILL Speaking of drugs, 19-year-old Czech archer Milan Andreas has tested positive for marijuana use, the CTK news agency reports, and may be dropped from that country’s Olympic team. The decision will be made on Wednesday.

Daily Steroids Dose

1.  Big Mark McGwire stays quiet outside of baseball.  (USA Today)

2.  Dwain Chambers runs a 10.05 100M, the UK's best.  (The Independent)

3.  Catching drug addiction before it starts.  (TransWorldNews)

4.  Terry Bradshaw clarifies remarks about steroids: he meant anti-inflammatory steroids, or was did he mean aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid, but Terry knew that) (I-Team, NY Daily News)

5.  Two of 10,000 Texas boys tested positive for the juice.  (KFDA)

6.  Jailer caught selling steroids to undercover cop.  (Wicked Local)

7. Disipio.com discusses the regenerative powers of Albert Pujols seen to the right in his high school freshman portrait (pronounce the 'j').

(ex)World record holder/Olympian Tim Montgomery arrested for heroin distribution

Once the world's fastest man, sprinter Tim Montgomery might just be the world's sorriest man tonight.  NBC-7 in Virginia reports Tiny Tim's arrest on heroin charges yesterday.  Not a timely arrest (as if any heroin arrest is timely) as Montgomery heads to court for sentencing on fraud and money laundering convictions.

Former Olympic track star Tim Montgomery has been indicted on heroin distribution charges weeks before he is sentenced in a scheme to cash millions of dollars in stolen or forged checks.

The 33-year-old sprinter once dubbed the fasted human on Earth was arrested Wednesday, accused of dealing more than 100 grams of heroin in Virginia over the past year.

A U.S. District Court magistrate ordered Montgomery jailed pending a bond hearing Monday.

Montgomery pleaded guilty in the check-kiting conspiracy, admitting he helped his former coach, Olympic champion Steve Riddick, and others cash $1.7 million in stolen and counterfeit checks. He faces up to 46 months in prison when he is sentenced May 16.

Montgomery's former companion, Olympic goal medalist Marion Jones, currently is serving a six-month prison term for lying to investigators about her role in the check-fraud scam and using steroids

As with Roger Clemens, the question remains 'how far can these athletes fall?'  Montgomery's former partner (ex-wife and current inmate) Marion Jones lost Olympic gold medals, scads of money, and all fan respect.  Montgomery lost a world record in the 100M, scads of money, and now his freedom for some time to come.  Others in the BALCO trial like Barry Bonds and Tammy Thomas stand to lose a great deal of integrity (?freedom) too.

Montgomery was linked to drug dealing in the past, just not quite as obvious as an arrest.

Montgomery's ex-coach Trevor Graham faces an upcoming BALCO perjury trial that threatens to blow the shorts off track and field.

Steroid/drug bust in Australia nets former Olympic athlete, swimmer Miller

Olympic swimmer Scott Miller, winner of silver and bronze winner, and his buddy collected a ton of nasty drugs and some interesting equipment.  To the Sydney Morning Herald:

An Olympian and the son of a legendary former Wallaby captain have been charged after police allegedly seized a commercial pill press, drugs and cash in raids on Sydney's northern beaches.

Olympic silver and bronze medallist Scott Miller and Mark Catchpole, the 40-year-old son of former Wallaby captain Ken Catchpole, were charged after a storage facility in Brookvale was raided yesterday.

Police allegedly found a pill press, professional tablet counter and some other items.

The pill press was capable of producing up to 27,000 pills an hour, police said.

Get a look at this cache, which is impressive:

Police also allegedly found capsicum spray and steroids, a loaded revolver, tablets believed to be ecstasy, powder believed to be methamphetamine and a large amount of cash in other raids.

Police charged both men with possession of a tablet press.

Mark Catchpole, 40, was also charged with possessing cannabis, cocaine, ecstasy, crystal methylamphetamine, and a .32 calibre pistol.

He was also charged with the supply of methylamphetamine and possessing $224,000 which police allege are the proceeds of crime.

NASCAR driver -- Aaron Fike -- fired up on heroin before he fired up his ride

Aaron Fike from Galesburg Ill, admitted he shot up heroin before he went out racing.  That ain't bumping that's racing according to ESPN:

Suspended NASCAR driver Aaron Fike now admits that he not only secretly struggled with drug addiction for years but also shot up heroin on some race days.

In his first in-depth interview since being arrested for heroin possession last summer, the 25-year-old said he had been using heroin for eight months and suffered from a dependency on painkillers for six years before that. In the weeks prior to his arrest, his once-a-week experiment with heroin had become a daily routine, including the days he was competing in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series.

NASCAR officials, when informed of Fike's admission, said the league has kept an eye on the more proactive random drug testing policies recently ramped up by the "Big Four" major league sports but point to the list of recent suspensions as proof that the current policy is working.

More bloody syringes and such:

On July 7, 2007, Fike and fiancée Cassandra Davidson were arrested in the parking lot of Kings Island amusement park outside of Cincinnati. Security guards knocked on the window of Fike's Toyota SUV after realizing that a black sheet was preventing anyone from seeing into the back seat. At first the couple attempted to flee, but a search of the vehicle turned up a haul of drug paraphernalia, including a 100-count box of syringes, bloody napkins and black tar heroin.

Fans may be surprised that narcotics are considered PEDs:

Narcotic analgesics mainly function as painkillers but also may produce euphoria or psychological stimulation, false feelings of invincibility, and illusions of physical prowess. These drugs also increase the pain threshold, which can cause greater injury because an athlete may not be aware of the original injury. Use of narcotics can also lead to physical dependence. Narcotic analgesics include Demerol, Dilaudid, Percodan, and Vicodin.

Physical dependence ensues, like compelled to shoot up in the parking lot before a dangerous race.  Thank goodness Fike ascertained treatment for narcotics dependence. (thanks to Sal for the tip)

Wrestling sites reporting that Nancy Benoit texted Chris Benoit about 'roid rage

ProWrestling,net and the Pro Wrestling Post carry leaking stories about Nancy Benoit's text messages to husband Chris Benoit, prior to the fated homi-suicide last summer.  (extensive documentation here)

It appears that Nancy Benoit sent concerned messages to the pro wrestler about his behavior inclusing his emotional instability.

Nancy Benoit complained of Chris Benoit's steroid abuse and referred to WWE's Wellness Policy as a "joke" in text messages retrieved from her husband's cell phone. "I will not accept this steroid induced roller coaster ride of emotional abuse," Nancy wrote in a text message on May 9, 2007. "Ignoring the problem or running away isn't going to help you face it. You need professional (help) and only if you're fully honest about all of it."
 
In a text message later that day, she mentioned WWE's wellness program. "Get off the stuff," she wrote. "It's obvious (you're on). I'm probably not the only one who can see and we both know the wellness program is a joke."

Obviously more factors influenced Benoit's behavior.  Although there is evidence anabolic steroids cause some increases in emotionality in users, such a homi-suicide occurs rarely in AAS users.  However we would suggest that steroid use in some vulnerable users, or in combination with other drugs, and a propensity to aggressiveness can ignite violent behavior.  More:

Powell's POV: Nancy's frustration with her husband's behavior and the way he was treating her in those final weeks is also well documented. "Are you trying to say this is how you grew up, watching your dad call your mom names and making her cry?" she wrote. "No. Then what gives you the right."
 
The messages help explain to some extent what was going on in their lives in the weeks leading up to the murders. The steroid allegations and the comment regarding the wellness program could be a public relations nightmare for WWE if the cable news talk shows pick up on the story again. The timing couldn't be worse from a company perspective because they are probably on the radar of mainstream reporters due to the fireworks accident that took place at WrestleMania 24.

Too bad Benoit or someone from the tainted wrestling organization (WWE) didn't pick up on his irregular behavior in time to change something.

 
This original source for the above news was Dave Meltzer’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter. For subscription information, visit WrestlingObserver.com.

Saloon slinging steroids (and HGH)?

The Toledo Blade reports that police found a cache of 'steroids' and syringes in an Ohio bar during a raid on the joint. 

Charges filed against two owners of the Rodeo Bar & Grill in Oregon were dismissed yesterday after a third owner admitted the steroids and syringes found during a search of the business in January were his, their attorney said.

Johnathan Roumaya, 23, of 3140 Shoreland Ave., Washington Township, pleaded no contest and was found guilty yesterday in Oregon Municipal Court to a misdemeanor charge of possession of dangerous drugs. A misdemeanor charge of permitting drug abuse was dismissed. He faces up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine. Mr. Roumaya was referred to the probation department yesterday for a presentence investigation. He is scheduled for sentencing April 14.

You're going to read that the owner claimed he used the 'roids personally, but why keep his stash at such a public venue?  Wonder if slinging steroids has made local bar scenes like certain bars sling the rock?

The Rodeo Bar and Grill, 3150 Navarre Ave., is believed to be where Michael Gagnon, 24, of Adrian was drinking Dec. 30 prior to heading the wrong way on I-280 and crashing the pickup he was driving into a van, killing five members of a Maryland family.

Authorities searched the bar in January and found steroids and syringes in a filing cabinet. The items found were listed as a blister pack containing nine tablets of Clenbuterol, a bottle with liquid Clenbuterol, several vials of the human growth hormone Jintropin, and a bag of syringes and more human growth hormone. Clenbuterol is a steroid used in meat production that's banned in the United States.

Mr. Potts said Mr. Roumaya bought the steroids for his use though never used them. The other owners, Mr. Yousif and Mr. Murdzia, had no knowledge of the steroids being at the bar, their attorney said.

"[Mr. Roumaya] wanted to be a man about it," Mr. Potts said. "He wouldn't allow his partners to be put through the ordeal and expense to defend themselves when they knew nothing about it."

Good job 'man'.  Also note that neither clenbuterol nor HGH is a steroid.  Perhaps bars join other black market sources of steroid/HGH distribution:

• Buying drugs from AIDs patients
• Distribution from the Russian mafia and other elements of organized crime
• Anti-aging clinics
• Rogue doctors and vets
• Smuggled from Mexico
• Some synthesized in home labs

Sleazy business, huh?

Live blogging the Congressional steroid hearing 3: Selig and Fehr

(11:49 DC time).  Bud Selig on the stand.  He says that he initiated the Mitchell probe because he has nothing to hide.  He points out steroid violations at all levels of baseball have decreased.  Selig is deeply saddened by the behavior of the players.  (interesting)

Don Fehr's turn to testify.  He offers up the successes of testing, although he admits he underestimated the PED problem in baseball.  He wants to discuss HGH in depth.  Talks about banning the substance, and agreeing to begin testing as soon as a valid lab test can be developed.  He talks about non-analytic positives.

Fehr is asking for more federal regulation of HGH, and applauds Rep Lynch's bill, as well as Biden and others introducing legislation.

Fehr is calling the Mitchell Report as 'management only'.  Fehr says steroid use is on the wane -- note his voice wavers on this point.  He wants more time to discuss the issue.

Fehr gets a shot in at Selig talking of 'unilateral implementation' of anti-doping measures.  He doesn't want public disclosure of accused players.

Fehr now taking questions.  He expresses irritation about the extend of the notification (although Mitchell explained he sent letters, to which the MLBPA discouraged replys)

Sad affairs with Andy Reid's sons, including 'roids

Can there be anything more painful for parents than to see their children struggle so desperately with life?  There is no joy in reporting the difficult struggles Philadelphia Eagles' coach Andy Reid faces with his adult sons.  What happened that things went so wrong with the lives of the two sons of the successful NFL  coach?

A Pennsylvania judge says that Reid's house in PA was a warehouse for drugs including steroids.  From Fox News:

NORRISTOWN, Pa. —  A judge who sentenced Philadelphia Eagles coach Andy Reid's sons to jail on Thursday likened the coach's home to "a drug emporium" and questioned whether his adult sons should live there, given their drug problems.

"There isn't any structure there that this court can depend upon," Montgomery County Judge Steven O'Neill said before sentencing Reid's son Britt to up to 23 months in jail plus probation.

"I'm saying this is a family in crisis," O'Neill said.

When arrested last year, the Reid boys harbored significant amounts of drugs and weapons:

Police found a shotgun and hollow-point bullets along with cocaine, marijuana and OxyContin, a painkiller, in the vehicle Britt Reid was driving during a Jan. 30 road-rage encounter, and later found a handgun at the house that they believe he had brandished at the other driver.

They found vials of heroin and steroids, more than 200 pills and a drug scale in Garrett Reid's car the same day, when he injured another motorist.

Are NFL coaches that busy, that dedicated, and that single minded in the pursuit of voctories, that they ignore what's up with the family?  If so, that horse is long gone out of the barn.

The judge noted that Andy and Tammy Reid love their sons and have supported them through repeated attempts at drug rehabilitation. But he wondered aloud how the parents could be blind to the long list of drugs, guns and ammunition that police found in the Reids' home and vehicles.

"These are highly addictive medications that are just around the house with two addicts in it," O'Neill said. "It sounds more or less like a drug emporium."

As the LA Times reports, Garrett Reid sold drugs down in the hood.  He is so 'addicted' to drugs he smuggled RX pills into his jail cell.

It was Garrett who told the court he enjoyed being the rich kid who dealt drugs in "the hood," but that, "I don't want to be that kid who was the son of the head coach of the Eagles, who was spoiled and on drugs and OD'd and just faded into oblivion."

Yet he is apparently still addicted. Earlier in the day, authorities found 89 prescription drug pills in his jail cell. They believe he smuggled them in his rectum when he was jailed earlier this week.

Tearful Martina Hingis amps down tennis career amid positive coke tests

What is going on with the news?  If it isn't water boarding tortures, or Donald Rumsfeld memos or writer's strikes, or global warmings, it is about pro athletes denying the latest drug charges.

Snorting back tears, Martina Hingis retired from professional tennis when cocaine turned up in her urine drug tests taken at Wimbledon.  The LA Times carries this story.

ZURICH, Switzerland (AP) - Martina Hingis said Thursday she has been accused of testing positive for cocaine at Wimbledon, and then announced her retirement from professional tennis.

Hingis, a five-time Grand Slam champion and former Wimbledon winner, denied using cocaine.

"I find this accusation so horrendous, so monstrous that I've decided to confront it head on by talking to the press," she said. "I am frustrated and angry. I believe that I am absolutely 100 percent innocent."

Where is Dog Chapman when you need him to investigate these drug testing companies that mix up samples (guess he has his own problems)?  Both Hingis 'A' and 'B' samples snowed positive.

Hingis said she was accused by "an outsource testing company" of taking cocaine during Wimbledon. She said she was "shocked and appalled" when notified that her urine sample came back positive after the loss to Granville... 

Hingis said she later underwent a privately arranged hair test which came back negative for cocaine. The official backup "B" sample test on her Wimbledon urine sample, however, tested positive for the drug.

Hingis said she hired an attorney who found "various inconsistencies" with the urine sample taken during Wimbledon.

"He is also convinced that the doping officials mishandled the process and would not be able to prove that the urine that was tested for cocaine actually came from me," she said.

The World Tennis Association (WTA) does not yet know about Hingis' problems.  So why the rush to judgment?

WTA Tour chief executive Larry Scott said the tour had not received any official information about a positive test and "as a result we are not in a position to comment on the matter."

"However, it is important to remember that in the area of anti-doping, all players are presumed innocent until proven otherwise," Scott said.

BTW, there exist any number of clever blog writers to cover for those striking guild writers...

Update on coke as a PED, from ESPN and Gary Wadler.

Weird court proceedings for Elijah Dukes in Tampa: Devil Rays refused to release drug testing results

Is is us, or is the world getting nuttier every day?  Re: the case of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays Elijah Dukes.  Mrs. Dukes accused her husband of marijuana and steroid use leading to violent rages; Dukes is not paying her court-ordered child support, to boot.  A Tampa judge issued a subpoena for the drug testing records, however the Devil Rays refused to deliver the documents.

As documented (Deadspin, With Leather) Dukes, the Devil Ray rookie, threatened his wife, sent nasty images to her cell phone, disrupted his wife while she was teaching school, and generally behaved not so nicely.

[Gilbert, Duke's wife] told the court in another filing [for a restraining order] Thursday that her husband threatened to kill she (and children) and sent a photo of a handgun to her cell phone.

Events got dirty, lawyers got called, and things ended up in court...you have seen it before.  Dukes admitted to drug use in a Florida court in July; the wife accused him of MJ and steroid use. The presiding judge apparently ordered the Devil Rays to supply the court with Dukes drug testing results. (A full listing of the court's requirements of Dukes, after the jump). The baseball club did not cough up the drug tests.

Today, the presiding judge wanted to know just why the Devil Rays did not release the drug tests, which could show MJ and steroid use (My Fox Tampa Bay)

Another nasty round of divorce court led to charges that the Devil Rays are trying to hide steroid use by player Elijah Dukes. A drug test forced the Rays to sideline Dukes, and now the team is refusing to release the results of that test. Judge J. Kevin Carey wanted to know why he didn't have Dukes' drug evaluations, as ordered. The attorney for Dukes' estranged wife, Nishea, said that steroids may be the underlying reason for Dukes' aggressive behavior... "All of a sudden, we start to see these personality changes and I suspect it's that they are associated with the taking of steroids," said attorney Catherine Real.

The Tampa judge is not pleased with the Devil Rays.  If the judge subpoenaed Duke's drug tests, it would seem under Florida law, the employer (the Devil Rays) should have released those records to the legal proceedings, with or without employee permission. Dukes also underwent treatment at the Menninger Clinic (Psychiatric clinic) in Texas.  The judge subpoenaed those records in addition to the Devil Ray's records on Dukes:

Dukes' attorney (Ms Real) said during a July hearing that Dukes had undergone an evaluation while at the Menninger Clinic in Texas, Real said.

Real said the clinic records may include drug test results that could show whether Elijah Dukes had taken steroids or growth hormones. But she acknowledged she isn't sure what the records contain because she hasn't seen them.

The judge in July gave Dukes' attorney 10 days to send Real the records. Real never received them. She subpoenaed the Devil Rays for them.

The Devil Rays say in court papers that any documents in the team's possession about Dukes' health are confidential and cannot be released without Dukes' permission, which he has not given.

In response to today's court proceedings, the Devil Rays released this statement: "The Rays are not a party to these matters, and the law prohibits the release of any employee's medical records or other information without employee permission."

It would seem that a judge's order to turn over medical records in a legal case trumps an employee's right to privacy. More to come next week on this as the parties are back in Tampa court.

David Boston not in ecstasy as Bucs cut him from roster

Looks like the Tampa Bay Bucs released David Boston from a contract.  Boston, whose career maneuvered through steroid suspensions, and multiple injuries was arrested for public intox, after he was found sleeping at the wheel of his car, motor running.  Boston seriously contended for a starting WR spot with the Bucs.  Looks like he just ran a crossing pattern with the management who crossed him off the roster.  (More from Tampa here and here)

The arrest video was made public on the Internet; we didn't see signs of alcohol intoxication from the player.  Boston performed well on cerebellar tests (walking a straight line etc.), however he appeared a bit belligerent.  We even thought the arresting cop behaved in an annoying way.  We were right/wrong.  Boston's urine contained a huge level of GHB, and thus he faces intox charges;  there was no alcohol reported.

GHB is gaba-hydroxybutyric acid -- or Ecstasy -- is a GABA-related drug, sold as Xyrem, a drug for narcolepsy.  GHB can be synthesized by your friendly neighborhood chemist for sale to bodybuilders, and ne'er-do-wells; the bodybuilder thinks it packs on muscle (by releasing growth hormone) the antisocial thinks the drug is a date-rape drug.

Interesting because GHB is not covered, according to sources, by the NFL's drug policy;  however arrests for public intox are covered by the league's personal conduct policy.

According to published reports, Boston had 870 micrograms per milliliter of GHB in his urine. Cynthia Lewis-Younger, medical director for the Florida Poison Information Center in Tampa, told the Tampa Tribune that the amount is four times what one would expect to see in the urine of someone who received a prescribed, legitimate dose.

The drug is believed by some of to have bodybuilding properties, but that has not been proven. GHB is an illegal substance under law, but the NFL does not test for the drug, so it does not fall under the league’s substance abuse policy. Nevertheless, NFL spokesperson Greg Aiello said a violation of substance abuse law is a violation of the league’s personal conduct policy.

Agitation is frequent in GHB intoxication. An noted here:

Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry detected GHB in 12 of 40 patients with agitation, with serum levels of 108 to 422 mg/L and urine levels of 557 to 8221 mg/L. Of these 12 patients, 4 were also confirmed negative for stimulant co-intoxicants by toxicologic screen.

Fourteen presentations with agitation also included bizarre features (“doing somersaults,” “snapping lips and tongue, spastic type movements and bizarre behavior and speech,” “hugging trees, laying his head on the sidewalk,” “licking his own arms,” “climbing into a mailbox wearing fishnet thong, unsure why”) or self-injurious behaviors (“beating his head with his fist,” “threw himself against a wall”).

Boston's 870 mg/ml of GHB in urine  places him in the spectrum mentioned above.  His video behavior revealed no somersaults, however.  Now he would appear to have plenty of time to practice the 'climb into mailbox wearing fishnet thong' competition.

Boston's wife is expecting child #2, so hope he cleans himself up.

New angle on Benoit's rage: dementia (psychosis) caused by brain damage

ABC News, among other media outlets, carries a story on the Benoit situation.  As we all remember Chris Benoit started the summer of steroids rolling by committing a heinous homi-suicide when he killed his wife and 7 year-old son, then hung himself in his home gym.  The bizarre ritualistic nature of the killings -- bound his wife's hands and legs, put bibles by the bodies, then waited a day before snuffing himself -- promoted many to wildly speculate about causes.

The Benoit debate implicated 'roid rage, other drugs in his system (Xanax and narcotics), chronic multiple concussions, and psychosis.  The logical conclusion to such a bizarre episode is that Benoit was indeed psychotic, a psychosis brought on my multiple factors, none more important than others, but certainly a lethal mix.

Today's information, adds to the complexity of the story.  However, given the superficial one track nature of public thinking (there must be ONE cause), this story can be misleading too.

Benoit's brain was analyzed by a neurosurgeon (Dr. Bailes) at West Virginia, who is concerned about chronic concussions.  He found evidence in the postmortem, that the brain suffered from traumatic brain injury (TBI):

Bailes and his research team took samples from Benoit's brain postmortem and compared these microscopic brain scans to those of a healthy brain.

They found that Benoit's brain showed an advanced form of dementia that appears on the brain scan as brown clumps or tangles. These brown spots are actually dead brain cells, killed off as a result of head trauma, said Bailes.

In Benoit's case, the damage was found in every section of the brain  — all four lobes and deep into the brain stem.

"It was extensive throughout Chris' brain," Bailes said. "This is something you should never see in a 40-year-old."

The damage is proof, Bailes said, that Benoit suffered multiple, probably chronic, concussions over the course of many years.

Dementia is a behavioral syndrome when loss of orientation, memory and intelligence occurs.  In the early stages, there may be subtle loss of mental function.  However, the condition must be documented behaviorally and psychologically.  We are  unsure of this in Benoit's case.

If the brain showed signs of chronic damage - traumatic brain injury - then Benoit could clearly suffer psychiatric symptoms such as a psychosis based on the TBI...this would be called a Personality Change due to TBI, or a psychosis brought on by chronic head trauma (note the references).

To make this complex situation even more complex, Benoit's murderous behavior, uncharacteristic for him, was likely due to a number of factors, of which anabolic steroids figured in.  He was suffering from traumatic brain damage causing behavioral, psychological, and psychotic changes.  He exacerbated those problems with a mix of psychoactive drugs like Xanax and narcotics.  And he added to the aggressiveness with anabolic steroids.

Police use of anabolic drugs documented in new book 'Falling Off the Thin Blue Line'

The use of anabolic substances in law enforcement officers runs under most radars.  However, there is clearly an issue.  We highlighted a law enforcement-steroid scandal developing in Arizona, where widespread cop use of PEDs emerged in ongoing corruption investigations.  This post looked at a homicide trial, where steroid use was introduced as evidence for aggressive police behavior with deadly results.

A new book by a policeman highlights the use of steroids in law enforcement.  Titled  "Falling Off The Thin Blue Line" a new book by a former Texas cop, tells all about cop 'roid use (story by the AP, via The Charleston Gazette)

"Although I knew writing this book would cause a lot of controversy, my intention wasn't to cause widespread public mistrust in law enforcement,'' said David Johnson, the author and ex-police officer behind this incredible story.

Written from a first-person perspective with intriguing insights into the thought processes of law enforcement officers and criminals, readers will find Falling Off the Thin Blue Line difficult to put down. The author, who used a pseudonym to protect himself, writes candidly about his usage and eventual addiction to steroids. Despite most peoples' moral stance on the topic of steroids and drug abuse, the reader can't help but to identify with the author's struggle against his demons and grant him a modicum of respect. This book will disrupt the nation's current views on steroids and the reader will never look at law enforcement the same way again.

Here is an excerpt from the book:

"Holding the 10 cc vial marked "testosterona" carefully in my hand, I stuck my needle into the soft rubber stopper, flipped the vial upside down, and drew out 2 cc of oil. I pulled the needle out and tapped the side of the syringe to bring most of the air bubbles to the top.

I decided to stick it in my thigh. Off came my belt and down went my pants. This one hurt like a bitch on the way in. I slowly aspirated to see if I had landed the tip of the needle into a vein.

  No blood. Great.

  The plunger went in smoothly. I pulled the needle out, popped an alcohol swab on the site, and massaged the area.

I pulled my pants up, picked up my gun belt, and hooked it back on. It seemed to not fit me as well as it did a few weeks ago. I guess that would make sense because according to the scale, I had already gained fourteen pounds.

  I left the house and got back in my patrol car. I picked up the radio  and advised dispatch I was 10 8."

Dramatic, huh?  However, the issue is topical.  Not only do officers use steroids, they often are involved in the distribution of the substances, according to word on the street.  Interesting paradox.  Don't sleep feeling quite as safe tonight...

 

 

Arizona problem highlights steroid use by police

Although most never mentioned in the news, police in the US present a significant steroid problem.  Azstarnet highlights the issue with a story concerning a federal probe of widespread police and firefighter use of anabolics.

Google 'police and steroids'; the returns are incredible,  Use the sight test in large city streets; some of the cops are incredibly jacked.  Obviously some police are using steroids.  Although controversial, steroids do affect aggressiveness (take it to the bank).  No one wants to face an enraged cop on 'roids. Increased aggressiveness under stress. (here is a link to such a legal issue).

A federal investigation into the use of steroids has widened.

Authorities are confirming that more than a dozen Phoenix firefighters as well as police in Mesa are now connected to a Drug Enforcement Administration steroid investigation.

Mesa police confirmed Monday that one of their officers is under investigation.

Chandler police said they have been contacted by the DEA regarding the investigation, though the names of specific employees have not come up...

The Arizona Republic reported Saturday that that more than a dozen Phoenix police officers were linked to the federal steroid investigation.

A DEA spokeswoman confirmed an investigation regarding steroids is under way. She said the primary targets are not police or firefighters, but the doctors who improperly hand out prescriptions.

Benoit postmortem toxicology report out

Georgia officials released the long-awaited toxicology reports (New York Post link) on the homisuicide of the Benoit family.

Nancy Benoit: Three powerful narcotics, and a benzodiazepine to boot.  Huge load of drugs for a 40+ year old woman.

• Hydrocodone (Vicodin among others)
• Hydromorphone (Dilaudid)
• Alprazolam (Xanax)
• Alcohol

Daniel Benoit:  Xanax, not normally given to a child.

• Alprazolam (Xanax)

Chris Benoit:  A narcotic, a benzodiazepine, and reportedly elevated testosterone.

• Hydrocodone (Vicodin)
• Alprazolam (Xanax)
• 'Elevated' testosterone

Pathologists can test if the urine testosterone were exogenous or endogenous (looking for carbon atom abnormalities); no word on this lab test.  Normal adults secrete from 100 micrograms to 200 micrograms of T per day. There are reports of the level of T in Benoit's bladder, which give a figure of 207 mg/dl (?meaning because it isn't know if that is synthetic or natural).

We will now see the flood of stories that claim anabolic steroids lead to rage, and those who say that there is no evidence that anabolic steroids lead to rage. 

Testosterone is the hormone of aggression.  There will be no study of rage or aggression at dosages used by bodybuilders and pro wrestlers in combination with other drugs because of ethical and legal concerns.  An informed expert would say that anabolic steroids can increase aggression.

A simple testosterone level tells you little.  A lack of T might be of interest.  The relationship of T to aggression is complex.  Factor in the genetic predisposition of the individual, the sensitivity of androgen receptors, the social and environmental milieus.  That's a start on analyzing aggressiveness.

The worst cases of aggression appear to follow poly-drug use.  A benzodiazepine like Xanax can lead to dysinhibition and increased aggression.  Narcotics might cause mood changes and behavioral abnormalities too. Ditto for anabolic steroids.   Again, an expert would say that this kind of poly-drug combination could well increase depression, disordered thinking and aggressiveness.

 

Elijah Dukes' wife accuses him of steroid use

As posted by the Sports Frog, and now by NBC News, NiShea Dukes, estranged wife of embattled Tampa Bay Devil Ray Elijah Dukes told a judge yesterday that her husband smokes marijuana.  She then speculated that his aggressivenesses stems from steroid use.  However she admitted she has no physical evidence of such speculation.

The steroid allegation appears to be speculation thrown out there in a civil proceeding.  However the judge took the mj charge seriously, ordering Dukes for psychological testing and drug testing.

Dukes barged into a classroom where his wife taught at the time.  He now has a no-contact order separating him from  his family.

Embattled Tampa Bay Devil Rays outfielder Elijah Dukes admitting smoking marijuana under oath and was ordered to take random drug tests by a judge during a Monday divorce proceeding, according to a report by The Tampa Tribune.In addition, he was accused by his wife NiShea Dukes of using steroids.

NiShea Dukes, who has a restraining order on her husband, testified that he had been aggressive and violent towards her and drinks heavily. After accusing Elijah Dukes of using steroids, Judge Kevin Carey asked her if she'd ever seen him use the drug or he'd admitted using it, and she said no.

Still, the judge said he will not allow Dukes to see his two children until he sees a report from a recent psychological evaluation and in a temporary order, ruled that Dukes must pay his wife $3,300 a month in alimony as well as $2,800 in support for his two children.

NASCAR deals with drug testing

In the wake of the arrest of a driver on the Motorcraft truck racing circuit, NASCAR drivers and officials look at their drug testing policy.

At this point, it’s difficult to say who will have a more significant impact on NASCAR’s drug-testing policy, Aaron Fike or Kevin Harvick.

Police arrested Craftsman Truck Series driver Fike for possession of heroin and drug paraphernalia in the parking lot of an Ohio theme park July 7. That brought illegal drug use in motorsports into the news, but Harvick put the spotlight on it in Chicago.

Speaking to reporters at Chicagoland Speedway, site of the USG Sheetrock 400 won by Tony Stewart, Harvick criticized NASCAR for not taking the lead on such an important issue. Yes, the sanctioning body has the power to enforce a random testing policy, Harvick said, but he emphasized that it is not doing so.

Harvick and NASCAR exchanged views on drug testing:

“I believe every driver and every national series should be drug-tested a couple of times a year randomly, regardless of who you are or what you’re doing,” Harvick said. “I think we owe it to the sponsors and the fans to 100 percent know that this is a clean environment. It would eliminate a lot of those problems of the younger guys that disrespect the sport and the system.”

And then Harvick fired direct criticism at the sanctioning body.

“Shame on NASCAR for not policing our garage better than what they police it right now,” he said. “We’re all professional athletes and should be treated like professional athletes in other professional sports, and shame on them for not doing that.”

NASCAR responded predictably, saying its testing program is based on “reasonable suspicion,” that it has tested more individuals than either Harvick or the public are aware of, and it won’t react to statements made in the few days after an incident such as Fike’s comes to light.

“I respect the opinions of our drivers,” NASCAR spokesman Jim Hunter told the Charlotte Observer. “However, they don’t know who we test and when we test them.”

Perhaps the drivers, who risk their lives at the track, should know which driver might be using something, say like a narcotic that could seriously affect his reflexes or judgment.

Interesting that NASCAR does not employ a driver's union, thus that traditional barrier to effective drug testing does not exist.  Further, Indy Car drivers known exactly their plan:

Harvick’s stance is strengthened by the fact that stock-car drivers are independent contractors without a union and therefore subject to any policy NASCAR sets forth. If NASCAR prohibits clear visors, drivers won’t have clear visors; if the sanctioning body insists on pink driving shoes, everyone will match cutely.

Indy Racing League drivers know how this dictatorship works. Brian Barnhart, league president of racing and competition, said two IndyCar Series drivers are tested every other weekend based on a confidential and random rotation. As of the race at Nashville Superspeedway, Barnhart estimated 80 percent of the drivers have been summoned to the medical center for a “surprise” test; the rest will be before season’s end.

NASCAR drivers believe that a proactive drug-testing policy makes sense on many levels: prevents problems, sets standards, and enhances PR.  Perhaps MLB and the NFL should learn from NASCAR's example.

“I don’t believe we have a huge problem, but it’s still the black eye of the one or two guys that do have a problem,” Harvick said. “That just kind of frustrates me a little bit.

“I just think it would be good for the sport if they just cleared the air and there was never any speculation about it whatsoever. That is something that could be easily fixed and should be fixed.”

Jeff Burton also called for tougher measures, saying he “wished NASCAR would test more than” it does. “You need to know you’re going [to be tested] five or six times a year,” he said.

More Benoit takes

Several developments in the Benoit case:

1.  The US Congress becomes interested in anabolic steroid and PED abuse; better late than never.  Story in the Baltimore Sun.

Congress, which has examined steroid policies in baseball, football and basketball in the past few years, must now address allegations of "rampant" steroid use in professional wrestling, says a Florida lawmaker."Between 1985 and 2006, 89 wrestlers have died before the age of 50," Republican Rep. Cliff Stearns said yesterday. "Of course, not all of these deaths can be attributed to steroid use. However, this abnormally high number of deaths of young, fit athletes should raise congressional alarms."

Stearns' call follows the death last month of pro wrestler Chris Benoit, who strangled his wife and 7-year-old son before hanging himself. Steroids were found in Benoit's home, although it's unclear whether they played a role in the slayings.

2.  Feds pursue the doctor for Benoit, including a Grand Jury indictment.  ABC News here:

Federal prosecutors plan to seek a superseding indictment against the personal doctor to pro wrestler Chris Benoit, according to a court filing late Tuesday.

The filing in U.S. District Court in Atlanta says that prosecutors have advised an attorney for Dr. Phil Astin that they will present the case to a grand jury for a second time "after a more thorough review" of documents seized from Astin's office in west Georgia during two raids by federal drug agents.

3.  Some of the toxicology reports came in from the Benoit investigation.  Nothing released, and you can bet the results will be kept confidential. Fox News on this.

Meanwhile, Benoit action figures still available

A Wales site, icWales.com says Benoit action figures roam the toy shelves there.

A TOY store has sparked outrage by selling figures of a real-life child-killer. Cardiff’s Toys R Us was yesterday stocking figures of former World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) wrestler Chris Benoit.

Benoit strangled his wife Nancy and seven-year-old son Daniel before hanging himself at his home in Georgia, USA, on June 25. A police investigation is ongoing.

After the tragedy, WWE’s Shopzone merchandise website pulled all stock related to Benoit. But the Echo was yesterday able to buy a four-figure pack featuring the wrestler at Toys R Us off Cardiff Bay Road.

The packaging was labelled Micro Aggression and the Chris Benoit figure stood in the package next to another figure called the Undertaker.

Former professional wrestler David Dimond, 30, from Barry, was horrified to see the Benoit figure on the toy store shelves.

The hospital security guard, who has a daughter and three stepchildren, said: “I was shocked. It’s disgusting.

“You might as well have Charles Manson in there.

“Chris Benoit killed his wife, he killed his kid and he killed himself. It sends out the wrong signal by stocking those figures in a toy shop.”

Strong reaction to the toy;  however some collectors are hedging bets on the item:

Benoit had been a popular figure worldwide, and appeared in a WWE showcase at Cardiff International Arena...

Ironically, the very fact that some shops are withdrawing the Benoit toys from their shelves could make them macabre collectors’ items in years to come.

Matt Harding, assistant manager at the collectibles store Forbidden Planet in Duke Street, Cardiff, said: “He was a good wrestler with a big fan base.

“I would keep it in the box and in mint condition.

“I don’t know how much it would be worth, but I imagine people would be looking to buy it in the future.”

No one from Toys R Us was available for comment.

Story continues

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Benoit highlights steroid situation

411.mania carries the best summary of the Benoit situation out there.  What started as a tabloid story now is gathering momentum as a major event that could affect  the use and abuse of PEDs, especially anabolic steroids in sports and entertainment. 

Although athletes suffered many untoward effects in the past, including the deaths of Ken Caminiti and many cyclists in part due to PEDs, the public appeared to deny any problems, or ignored the issues.  Debates revolve around the validity of records set by juiced athletes.  Now debates can include the aggressiveness induced by many of these drugs.  Remember that testosterone incites aggression as an androgenic effect;  there is no debate about that issue, again despite what steroid apologists write and say.

The major questions revolved around the Benoit homisuicide include:

• Why are the side effects of these drugs denied or misunderstood by a large part of the public?
• Why  don't the government agencies charged with regulation and enforcement of drug laws work with the athletic leagues or entertainment venues to stop the flow of these illegal drugs?
• Why does the government focus on the top level of distribution?  Why not actually enforce the statutes on the users (athletes and entertainers)?
• Why isn't there a sports fraud law on the books in the United State as in Europe?  The use of PEDs by a baseball star is just as much fraud as the misrepresentation of say published specifications from GMC about an automobile.
• And when will the policies, the neglect, the promotion of PED use by the teams, the owners, the administration of the sports organizations or entertainment venues be held responsible for the illegal use of their players and actors?

The issue is simply a failure of the sports fans of this country to educate themselves then admit to the facts of these drugs.

If the majority believe that the risks of using PEDs is worth the bloated achievements of the drug-cheats, then simply make PEDs legal.  Although that would present formidable problems for the sports physicians who would dispense the drugs, legalization is one avenue to prevent some of the physical damage street steroid users suffer from PED use.  Also remember that in pro wrestling doctor prescribed steroids are acceptable;  that outcome hasn't been so good.

The other option would be to allow anyone to use anything, adopting the rather ignorant 'it's my body I will do anything to it I want', philosophy.  Let anyone use anything they darn well please.  The caveats here would be:

• Don't expect health insurance to pay for your cardiac transplant, your ruined liver and internal organs, and all the medical complications you caused to yourself.  Don't expect we the public, to pay for what you the individual did so stupidly to your body; it was your body so pay for it.
• And if you commit a crime using your body and whatever you want to put into your body, then you should not be surprised;  you're going to pay a debt to society despite your freedom to ingest dangerous drugs.

The drug cheating comes very easily to a society where cheating permeates all levels of sport, business, academics, and other realms.   After all, if you're not caught, it isn't cheating it is simply a moral violation which doesn't really matter any more.

Although we raised our moral voices a bit here, this issue should be approached in a level-headed logical fashion. No hype and no histrionics.  We need a clear-headed, honest discussion.

Do political connections make pro wrestling (WWE) untouchable?

How can Vince McMahon survive yet anther wrestler's death, yet more steroid and PED scandals, and more lame and sick story lines.  He has untold political connections that's how.  As CNN/SI notes McMahon already sat through a trial accusing him of distribution of anabolic steroids:

If steroids are common in pro baseball and football, then the drugs are rampant in pro wrestling, which places an enormous emphasis on the size of its athletes. Former Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura  admitted to using steroids when he was in the WWE andHulk Hogan has admitted to taking steroids for 13 years. In 1993, McMahon was charged with conspiring to distribute steroids to his wrestlers, one of whom testified that McMahon had directed him to use steroids. McMahon was acquitted by a jury in U.S. District Court the following year.

Moreover, Bruno Sammartino refused to be inducted into the wrestling hall of fame in 2005 because he believed wrestlers were pumping themselves with steroids. More recently, a story by SI.com reporters revealed that former WWE champion Kurt Angle and other wrestlers allegedly received a wide variety of anabolic steroids supplied by Applied, the Mobile, Ala., compounding pharmacy that was raided last fall by investigators.

McMahon and the WWE are well connected.  NY Post writer Phil Mushnick reports on this:

And aside from a news media that are just now waking up to McMahon - in addition to the deaths, his WWE TV shows rely on fringe pornography that's in large part aimed at kids and teens - McMahon has long been enabled by friends in very high places.

Lowell Weicker, a former governor and senator from Connecticut, where the WWE is headquartered, is a major WWE stockholder and sits on its board of directors. Weicker also serves as president of the board of Trust for America's Health, a health policy research group. Hmmm.

Then there's Dick Ebersol, head of NBC and USA Network sports, who has long been in McMahon's corner, both as a business partner and buddy. It was Ebersol who turned NBC over to McMahon in the form of the XFL, an obscene blend of pro football and WWE that also died young, but from embarrassment.

Joe Lieberman, the senator from Connecticut who has famously targeted the entertainment industry for its reliance on garbage - especially when thrown at kids - helped fund his last campaign with donations from the McMahon family.

Then there are big shots such as Trump, happy to throw in with McMahon for all the attention they can generate together.

When Congress subpoenas MLB about steroids, that's huge news, as it should be. But imagine if every season four or five big-league players died drug-related, performance-related and institution-related deaths. Well, it happens in pro wrestling...

Pro wrestling manufactures death. And the guy who owns and operates the biggest factory, the boss who sets the standards, is Vince McMahon. And, though it took 25 years and the deaths this week of Chris Benoit, his wife and son, the media are finally beginning to notice.

In other pro wrestling news:

• Legend Bruce Hart calls Benoit a “delusional juice freak;
• Benoit's first wife stands by him (at least she is alive)