WSJ Panel Grades Sports Organizations On Drug Testing Policies
The sports industry "has come far" in implementing drug testing, as "more than 600 sports associations adhere to the code" of WADA, according to Yvonne Dennis of the WALL STREET JOURNAL, which examined the "banned substances lists, detection procedures and disciplinary measures of more than two dozen sports entities, and had them analyzed by a panel of experts." Many doping codes are "enforced with random testing and 'targeted' testing," though the "largest North American sports leagues do not adhere to the WADA Code." The leagues said that the "main reason ... is because their drug policies are determined in collective bargaining with the players' unions." The panel that included three "experts" on drug testing awarded the IBF and the U.S. Boxing Association the highest score for their drug policies, as they test "every boxer after every championship and elimination bout for controlled substances, painkillers, barbiturates, steroids, amphetamines and marijuana." If a boxer "fails a drug test after a title fight," the title is "vacated." Meanwhile, ESPN's X Games drew the lowest score, as the event "has no formal policy." ESPN Manager of Event Publicity & Athlete Relations Katie Moses Swope said, "We have a zero-strike policy that states if a situation occurs regarding drug use with an athlete, they are immediately sent home" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 11/12).
|
RK
|
ORGANIZATION
|
SCORE
|
RK
|
ORGANIZATION
|
SCORE
|
|
1
|
IBF/U.S. Boxing Association
|
94.75
|
12
|
WNBA
|
58.75
|
|
2
|
IOC
|
93.75
|
t13
|
NBA
|
57.5
|
|
3
|
Int'l Tennis Federation
|
92
|
t13
|
NHL
|
57.5
|
|
4
|
Int'l Association
of Athletics Federations
|
91.25
|
15
|
PGA/LPGA/
European PGA
|
56.6
|
|
5
|
NASCAR
|
90
|
16
|
MLB
|
56.2
|
|
6
|
Kentucky Derby
|
82.25
|
17
|
NCAA
|
55
|
|
7
|
Tour de France
|
78.75
|
18
|
EPL
|
51.25
|
|
8
|
MLS
|
73.75
|
19
|
PBA
|
30
|
|
9
|
NFL
|
72.5
|
20
|
World's Strongest Man
|
27.5
|
|
t10
|
F1
|
68.75
|
21
|
CFL
|
16.25
|
|
t10
|
UFC
|
68.75
|
22
|
X Games
|
15
|
NOT MEASURING UP: ESPN.com's Lester Munson wrote NFL officials are "proud of the way they test for performance-enhancing drugs," and they "like to tout their program as massive, random and strict." But as "massive, random, and as strict as it might be, the NFL system isn't working." Vikings DTs Kevin and Pat Williams and Saints DEs Will Smith and Charles Grant were "caught using bumetanide, a masking agent that is used to cover up steroids," and they are "beating the system, using litigation to do it." The players "have avoided automatic suspensions, and they are still playing ... each week" (ESPN.com, 11/11).
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