SPORTS

Varsity Athletes on Drugs

000 percent increase in positive test rate a “problem” for GIS

By Chris Black, The Silhouette (McMaster University)

HAMILTON (CUP)—University athletes have become the outlaws of amateur Canadian sport.

The Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport (CCES), a federally funded agency that oversees drug testing for Canadian athletes, has seen a dramatic rise in positive tests in the past few months, and pot-smoking students from Nova Scotia to British Columbia are to blame.

Since the inclusion of marijuana on the CCES banned substances list in January 2004, eight Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) athletes have failed drug tests—this after only 30 positive tests were recorded among all university athletes from 1990 to 2003.

“The CCES has dealt with a large number of adverse analytical findings for ath- lete use of marijuana since the beginning of 2004, when cannabinoids were added to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) prohibited list,” said Jeremy Luke, sen- ior manager of the CCES doping control program.

With approximately 5,000 tests administered to varsity athletes since 1990, the positive rate hovered around 0.6 percent for 13 years. From October to December 2004, that positive rate increased by 500 percent, as 3 percent of CIS athletes tested failed.

“The problem is seen mostly in Canadian Interuniversity Sport...our message is simple: Athletes should not risk their sporting careers through cannabis use,” Luke said.

This is where Luke raises an interesting point, and a highly debated issue among administrators and athletes: Are athletes risking anything by using cannabis? Now that it is a banned substance, they surely risk the embarrassment of a positive test, but should it be banned?

“The (World Anti-Doping Agency) forced our hand,” said Joseph de Pencier, director of sport services for the CCES, in an interview with the Silhouette last year.

“While we do not view cannabis as performance-enhancing, it's contrary to the

spirit of sport,” said de Pencier.

In order to encourage honest and open dialogue, The Si/houette conducted an anonymous poll of varsity athletes at McMaster University, and drew interesting responses concerning testing for marijuana.

“T don't think we should be tested for it; it's not performance-enhancing in any way, and we're not professional athletes who are looked up to,” one athlete said.

“If we want athletics to be taken seriously in this country, we should be tested. Whether it's performance enhancing or not, it's still an illegal substance,” another athlete said.

“Perhaps if hot dog or pie eating contests were CIS sports, then I could see the arguments for it being performance testing,” a former OUA all-star said.

“We have to accept the rules that are given to us,” de Pencier told Canada.com in January. “We perhaps would like to see a little more flexibility on stuff like this that is not so central to the fight against doping.”

It is surprising that de Pencier wants more flexibility, given that the CCES already punishes athletes who test positive for marijuana with a meagre warning and reprimand. However, his desire to further loosen the rules speaks volumes about Canada's actual attitude toward marijuana use.

While some countries, led by the United States, pushed for the inclusion of mar- ijuana onto WADA's banned substances list, Canada objected to it being added.

The CCES's push for more flexibility comes from the requirement they publicly report all anti-doping rule violations. CIS chief executive officer Marg McGregor maintains she and the CIS have doubts about the requirements of a press release.

“We certainly have questioned, is it really necessary to do a media release, because there is the public embarrassment, and potentially it has some impact on the career choices of student athletes who might have wanted to go into law enforcement or law school or whatever,” McGregor told Canada.com. “Now if you just Google their name, up would pop up a cannabis infraction.”

A perfect example would be Ivan Birungi, a star wide receiver for Acadia University. Birungi tested positive for marijuana at the Atlantic University Sport semi-final on November 6, 2004. In addition to the national press release detailing his positive test, Birungi, who scored 11 touchdowns during the season, also had to forfeit his all-Canadian status based on testing positive for a substance that CCES executives admit is “not performance enhancing,”

Most McMaster athletes who were surveyed said that the press release is count- er-productive.

“T don't think embarrassing the athlete publicly is the answer. Most people at the very least have experimented with weed in their lives, whether it's an athlete, a regu- lar student, or our parents. It seems hypocritical to point out the athletes in the pub- lic,’ one athlete said.

While the CCES may cringe at forced punishments, as long as cannabis is on the banned substances list, de Pencier said he hopes the warnings and press releases will have a “deterrent effect” on athletes.

A recent McMaster survey found that 54 percent of athletes polled had used marijuana in the past year.

“T'd say that around 50 percent of the athletes here at Mac have smoked in the last year,” one athlete said. “I know that 90 percent of the guys I hang out with do. And I'd probably say 60 or 70 percent of my team does.”

One athlete said that—regardless of the embarrassment—the punishment wouldn't reduce consumption.

“For the average athlete, I don't think it will have any effect,” the Marauder said. “The only way to reduce it is to increase the chances of getting caught, not to increase the penalties.”

As an organization like the CIS has more serious issues, such as funding, to deal with, many athletes at McMaster question the resources being put into testing.

“T'm not sure if it costs more to include testing for marijuana, but if it does, that money could definitely be spent better elsewhere,” said one athlete from a smaller, struggling sport.

“The way the World Code and the (banned) list treat cannabis is not quite right,” de Pencier told Canada.com, “and we intend to continue pursuing that issue interna- tionally. But it takes a lot of time and money to do this and maybe in the fight against doping, that shouldn't be the priority.”