Over the past few days like everyone else, I spend my evenings watching the Olympic Games and muting those over-played Chevy commercials.
Throughout the games I’ve noticed the incredible amount of pressure a country puts on its athletes, and I began to wonder if that's why some choose to cheat their way to the top.
Over a hundred Russian athletes were suspended from the games this year. In fact, the entire Russian track and field team lost its chance to compete all together. Despite Russia’s past of using performance enhancing drugs, the Olympic committee permitted two thirds of the original entry list to compete in the Games.
But for the Russians, the crowds and competitors have not been so forgiving. Russian swimmer Yulia Efimova considers her experience this year “a war." Efimova has tested positive multiple times for banned substances and served a 16 month suspension over the past two years. She tested positive during a drug test this summer, but her provisional suspension was overturned which cleared her for the Olympic Games.
According to some athletes, the Russians should not have been permitted to compete in the Olympics. US swimmer Lilly King spoke out against doping, and the press quickly latched onto her voice as a means to protest against performance enhancing drugs. King said doping is something that needs to be noticed and dealt with.
On a sports radio show this week, two hosts debated the severity of a doping penalty. One defended athletes, saying a suspension is penalty enough. Why continue to discriminate against previous dopers after they've served their punishment? Though this seems logical -- considering said athlete had to give up the chance to compete -- the second commentator begged to differ.
He explained that performance enhancing drugs kill the dreams of other hard-working athletes who perform on their own strength. Most athletes only get one shot at the Olympics, such as gymnasts or swimmers. After a lifetime of training, it isn't fair to lose to someone who has cheated her way to the medal stand.
If doping in sports is illegal due to health reasons, why do athletes risk it? What sort of pressure does a country put on its athletes to represent their nation well by bringing home the gold? Is this a healthy competition, or like Efimova puts it, "a war?"
