It must be because the cycling world is so fond of using drugs. Being on the bike just demands a needle in the ass. Just kidding, we know that is not the case. But why is it that those in cycling seem to take the risk? Is it the money? The fame? The need? Why? Because, apparently, those in other sports don't use anything.
So I thought I would look at USADA (United States Anti-Drug Agency) and see what sports they really go after. Because cycling in the United States is HUGE (insert sarcasm tone)...way bigger than football or baseball or basketball. By the way, the last 3 sports are true American sports. What I found was a host of amazing resources. One of them really caught my eye though. It was a search engine called, "Individual Athlete Test History." You can find that Here. It allows you to search specific sports and names. I decided to give 'er a go. So I started with baseball. Lots of money, lots on the line, must mean lots of testing...right? I searched only the first quarter of 2011. This is what I found:
How about Basketball?
Football?
Triathlon?
Cycling?
Granted, this was for only the first quarter when cycling and triathlon are HUGE in the USA. Ya know, January and February (again, sarcasm). But the only people being tested are cyclists and triathletes! This is the biggest time of the year for Basketball and Football...but not a SINGLE ATHLETE TESTED! The important thing to note is the number tested. The pic only shows a 'portion' of the list. Cycling: 68 Triathlon: 29
So, to be fair, I decided to look at the entire 2011 season in the same sports. Here is what I found:
Baseball
Basketball
Football
Triathlon
Cycling
Remember, the list of names are just a small shot of the full list. Here are the stats for the number tested in 2011 by sport:
Baseball:25 Basketball:33 Football: 0 (zero) Triathlon:83 Cycling:354
I am not a keen follower of baseball, basketball, or football. But I am familiar with some of the big names in the sport. That said, I did not recognize ANY of those tested in those sports. Maybe others do, but it seems to be missing people like quarterbacks, pitchers, running backs, wide receivers, linemen, etc.
Look for yourself at all the information and correct me. I am not saying that my perception is reality...but for the time being, it is to me. Seems like USADA avoids American sports that draw a lot of money. Maybe those players are protected by unions? Is there another agency that test those sports? I really don't know.
If you want to see who received sanctions, go HERE.
If you want to read about the sanctions, and other fun stuff, go HERE.
2 comments:
Hi Roger,
I think you're missing the fact that the majority of the drug testing done for some of the major sports (MLB for sure) are not conducted by the USADA. I know for fact MLB uses a WADA certified lab in Montreal, Canada. Therefore, their "results" wouldn't appear in the USADA summary you're looking at. Like you, I would very much like to see a summary of the testing done in the major sports.
-Scott Roehrborn
Thanks Scott. From what I also understand is that the unions protect the athletes too. And in Cycling, the riders have yet to establish anything like that. I was told by another person that if a MLB player (may have been NFL) is going to be tested, they need 48 hours notice. And on top of that, if you look at their sanctions, it seems like 2 months or something similar, is what they get slapped with.
Thanks for the comment.
Roger
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