Why Do Athletes Take Drugs?

Reader Question: why do athletes  chose to use these drugs, since they are so clearly very bad for your health?

Winning at All Costs. An athlete can be very driven. Their only motive is winning. They are willing to sacrifice everything, time, effort e.t.c. In the bubble of intense focus on winning, sacrificing health may seem worth it. When Willy Voet was giving testimony at the trial of Richard Virenque (former Festina rider – systematically doped). Voet testified in court something like ‘If he (Virenque) had taken everything he asked for, he would be dead’

Flloyd Landis (after denying drug use for several years, later explained why he doped as a pro cyclists)

‘My choices were, do it and see if I can win, or don’t do it and I tell people, ‘I just don’t want to do that’, and I decided to do it.’ (Daily Mail)

Financial. Whenever pro athlete’s get caught they tend to say they felt under great pressure to produce results and satisfy their sponsor. For example, a pro cyclist’s wage is dependent on results. If they don’t perform they are out of a job. I would say glory and the esteem of winning are greater motives than financial, but it can play a role.

David Millar (pro cyclist) failed EPO test. He gives his reason for doping.

“I took the EPO because I knew that the Cofidis team was going to the Tour of Spain on condition that I was at the start and that I rode well. Nobody put any pressure on me but I felt it nevertheless (…) I took drugs because my job was to finish in a good place in the results. There were magazines in England, sports journalists, television stations, and I didn’t want to be criticised.” (L’Équipe, France, 20 July 2004)

‘Everyone Else Does It’. In the dark days of professional cycling (1980s, 1990s early 2000s) there was a general feeling (not always articulated, but certainly felt by the riders) that everyone else was doping. Therefore there was an underlying feeling, you had to take drugs just to keep up.  Also, if everyone else was doing it, they might think maybe it wasn’t so damaging.

Delusion

When there is a feeling everyone else is taking drugs it is easy to delude yourself that you are not cheating.

Virenque said: “We don’t say doping. We say we are preparing for the race. To take drugs is to cheat. As long as the person doesn’t test positive, they’re not taking drugs.” (from Breaking the Chain, W.Voet)

Health Dangers Uncertain. Many drugs have links with long term health risks. But, it’s like smoking. People know it may harm them in the future, but maybe they think it won’t harm them. Certainly some drugs are more harmful. E.g. When some riders had Hemocrit levels of 60% plus (from taking EPO), there blood was so thick they set alarm clocks in the middle of the night to get out of bed and stretch. Otherwise they had high chance of dying in their sleep. But, some micro EPO doses may give impression of being  safer.

Stupidity. If people have a cheating mentality they may take dope even if
they are in minority and their livelihood doesn’t depend on it. Amateur athletes have doped, often for bizarre reasons. – even when it didn’t lead to doping.

For example, Dan Staite (amateur British cyclist) failed an EPO test, he said

I made a mistake. I’m very sorry. I have moved on, although this news may be new to you I have been dealing with this for months. I don’t really want to detail my mistake as I feel it would ‘encourage’ others to follow. I hope you understand. (TT Forum)

Every doper is different. One reason so many doped in pro-cycling is that it created a culture where doping was the norm. Against this backdrop, the number of cyclists who didn’t dope were the exceptions rather than the rule.

I’m sure there are other reasons for doping, but these are some.

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