Here is another story of an Olympian athlete’s fall from grace. American athlete Marion Jones had been sentenced by an US District Judge to six months of imprisonment for lying about steroid use and involvement in a fraud case. Jones, the 2000 Sydney Olympics winner of 100m, 200m and 4×400m relay gold medals, 4×100m relay, and long jump bronze medals had earlier surrendered her medals on being found guilty of steroid use.
Since then, her names had been expunged from the record books. Her problems multiplied last October, when she admitted that she has lied to a federal investigator in November 2003 that she had never used performance-enhancing drugs. The second charge against the athlete was of conniving with her former boyfriend sprinter Tim Montgomery in lying before a federal investigator in a cheque fraud case. Jones’ six months prison term will begin from 11 March.
Scandals involving performance-enhancing drugs have been troubling the international athletic meets for a long time. Stringent drug testing measures have been able to nab a number of international athletes of using banned steroids. Is it correct to say that these athletes are solely responsible for consuming these drugs? Have they been lured by others? In many cases, it has been found that the coaches of these athletes have instigated the naive runners, many of whom come from an impoverished background to take these drugs to enhance their skills through increased physical power.
To be successful in the international gaming arena means handsome prize money and endorsements that are even more lucrative for the athletes, who serve as the role model of the society. Greed becomes nemesis for them. Stringent punishment to athletes like Marion Jones will be a revelation to all future athletes that there is no substitution to hard work.
Image: sportsagent
Source: BBC
