Are sports stars caught using illegal drugs being unfairly smeared?

With the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games now behind us and Australia’s major sporting bodies nearing the conclusion of their 2024 seasons, many athletes will be celebrating their hard-earned victories and mourning their losses.

While this is a joyous occasion for most, there is a high chance that some will get involved in a drug scandal.

Many readers will remember the devastating headlines during the Paris Olympics when an Australian hockey player Tom Craig was arrested (and released without charge) for allegedly purchasing cocaine.

As the former Olympic silver medalist was deluged by the media, Craig apologized before being sent home without Olympic privileges and later suspended from the national team. for 12 months.

Less than a week later, National Rugby League (NRL) star Latrell Mitchell got into trouble in the same way when a photo of him with white powder leaked online.

Mitchell claimed he made “bad decisions” and has now been fined $40,000 and suspended for one match because he brought the game into disrepute.

Drugs in sports

When we talk about athletes and drugs, we usually think of steroids.

These performance enhancing drugs are prohibited for use by athletes according to Sports Integrity Australia and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

To be placed on the banned list, a substance must meet two of the following three conditions: 1) it can enhance performance; 2) it can endanger the health of athletes; and 3) it is contrary to the spirit of sport.

It is not surprising that substances that give athletes an edge over the competition are banned.

Interestingly, illegal drugs such as cocaine and MDMA (ecstasy) are also on WADA’s banned list, despite there being no convincing evidence that they can enhance athletic performance.

Risk takers and thrill seekers

Australia is a sport loving country, many of us celebrate the risk taking and aggression of our athletes.

So why are we surprised that this kind of behavior, such as risk-taking and aggression, can sometimes lead to drug use?

After decades of research, It is now becoming increasingly clear that risk-taking, aggression and sensation seeking – personality traits that contribute to developing a great athlete – are also linked to increased drug and alcohol use.

This association is even stronger among men under 25 years of age.

There are all kinds of reasons why people, including athletes, use doping.

Not only are drugs often used to cope with the emotional pressures that can be extreme in professional sports, but also to manage the pain associated with physical injuries.

Often referred to as the “self-medication hypothesis,” some people use drugs and alcohol to manage their mental healthBut in reality it has often been shown worsening of mental health problems.

This also appears to apply to physical health management.

For example, chronic pain is the main reason why people find medical cannabis in australia.

Despite this, there is limited evidence that cannabis and other illegal drugs are harmful. effective in the long term in reducing pain.

In general, our sports stars are vulnerable to drug use, whether it is due to their personality, emotional pressures or physical health.

Social influences

The World Anti-Doping Code defines ‘the spirit of sport’ specifically as the ethical pursuit of human excellence through the dedicated perfection of each athlete’s natural talents.

This is a high bar, so it is no surprise that we as a community are seemingly outraged when an athlete is “caught” not meeting these high expectations.

Perhaps we should better distinguish perfection in sport from perfection in character.

Many believe These athletes are role models who must set a good example to young people.

It is true that social influence plays an important role in drug use among young people, but that does not mean that those we admire are guilty.

Instead, we need to have better conversations with young people about drug use.

The most important thing is that this conversation is based on facts, without personal criticism or judgment.

What can be done?

Stigmatizing drug use can cause mental health problems, which makes the situation even worse.

To ensure a relationship of trust, we must share facts with young people.

In 2021-2022, almost half of all Australians were over the age of 14 reported illegal drug use, most of whom did not experience any health problems from their use.

Although the safest way to avoid harm from drugs is to not use them, the message of “saying no to drugs” does not work. In some cases, This strategy can even be harmfulespecially for people who use drugs and do not receive support or treatment.

Everyone has the right to resources that can help them manage their drug use and well-being without being judged.

It is vital that we teach young people skills and strategies that not only help them avoid drugs, but also enable them to make evidence-based choices and minimise the potential for harm if they do decide to use drugs.

Why shouldn’t we support and empathize with our athletes in the same way?

This article has been republished from The conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.