Dwain Chambers for or against?

[sharonr]

It is a hard one.
We all make mistakes and hopefully he has learnt from it.
He shouldn`t have taken them and he has been punished.
My question is if he can race and win without taking any drugs, wouldn`t that show young athletes that you don`t need drugs to win?

[Kristen]

lynda66: I think his lifetime ban is only for the Olympics, isn't it? He's free to run in other events - indeed, he successfully won his heat in order to make him eligible for the Olympics. (But yes, other countries allow their drug cheats to complete in the Olympics after they have done their time. I don't personally have a problem that our rules may be tougher than some other countries, even though it is not a level playing field, and we may be doing ourselves out of a medal - easy to sink to the bottom of the pile, harder to get to the top of it smelling of roses!)

Mikeywills: "If he is clean now ... is he not also equal"

Is there any chance that the drugs he took then gave him and unfair advantage that still exists? More muscle or faster oxygen recovery, or whatever? I have no idea if it does, or even if people know whether it does, or not, but it would be a reason in my mind to exclude him.

But my issue would be with our other athletes who would have to run against him. Will they be ale to do their best, when they are faced with a known cheat being in the same lineup for the start?

I do have issues with the drug testing too. How come someone can get all the way to the Olympics, and only then get found out as a drug taker? Or how can (can't remember his name) an athlete take a cold remedy, same Brand Name as back home, but it actually has a different composition in the country he's in, so he's banned. And how the heck, as an athlete, do you mount a defence that you were innocent?

I think they need to tested so frequently that any "spike" in the graph can immediately be associated with something,a dn resolved - I don't think a one-off accidental cold flue remedy taken naively should ruin an athletes career, but without frequent testing how do you separate one-off from habitual, and accident from cheat?

I'd better get off this soap box before I fall off it ...

[Capsid]

It is a hard one.
We all make mistakes and hopefully he has learnt from it.
He shouldn`t have taken them and he has been punished.
My question is if he can race and win without taking any drugs, wouldn`t that show young athletes that you don`t need drugs to win?

But he did take drugs and that may have affected any future performance. The message he could give is I'll take drugs for a few years and build up my physique, I may or may not get caught, then I'll go drug free and win.

[Kristen]

"There is no need for it as for making a living i thought they was Amatuer's"

I think the deal is that they get appearance money for other events. So someone who is a Gold Medal Winner (at an amateur event, such as the Olympics) is going to either attract more money at such events, more opportunities, or both.

But I'm not sure how many such opportunities a known drug cheat, Gold Medal winner or not, is going to attract anyway. I wouldn't pay to go and see a past-cheat run - but I may be the only one, of course ...

[willowstar]

I don't normally express opinions on here but here goes!

He should be allowed to compete. He did something stupid and got caught (I can't help but think there are many others who cheat and don't get caught) He did his punishment so that should be that as far as I am concerned. Loads of people make pretty dodgy decisions in life and without everyone knowing the full circumstances I guess loads of us don't know how we would react in a given situation. Its easy to sit in judgment from the outside.

[TonyF]

He did something illegal in athletics terms and got caught and at the time he abused the drugs - and his colleagues - the rule was in place so he KNEW back then that if he got caught it was an automatic lifetime ban from the BOC. He knew the punishment that he might face if he abused drugs but he did it nevertheless, all down to him really.

And now he's whinging that his livlihood is being impaired - interestingly the Judge didn't see it that way as Chambers, nor the other competitors, get paid for the Olympics so it isn't interfering at all with his money making activities.

No sympathy for him at all, grandstanding whiners shouldn't prosper.

[pjh75]

No sympathy from me whatsoever... he knew the punishment was a lifetime Olympic ban and still chose to cheat so he has to accept the consequences. Simple.

[lynda66]

lynda66: I think his lifetime ban is only for the Olympics, isn't it?

But my issue would be with our other athletes who would have to run against him. Will they be ale to do their best, when they are faced with a known cheat being in the same lineup for the start?

yes it's only for the olympics ....... but why? if they consider him a cheat, is he not banned from competing at all?

Ben Johnson competed in the 1992 olympics after being banned for taking steroids in 1988 and stripped of his olympic medals and world record gained in Rome in 1987, (granted he didn't get past the semi finals) but as he was canadian he was allowed to run ....... none of the other athletes complained then, he had done his time and was free to run, as have many other athletes in the past.... ...... i just think its wrong for one country to blanket ban, whereas other countries do not ...... this is not an olympic rule, it's a country rule, and i don't think that it's fair.

[smallblueplanet]

Ben Johnson competed in the 1992 olympics after being banned for taking steroids in 1988 ....... none of the other athletes complained then...

How do you know they didn't?

I'm not sure you're right at all. I bet there were plenty of athletes that weren't happy he was allowed to compete!

[Starchild]

He would have had to have signed the same paperwork as I did on behalf of my daughter so sorry, no excuse.

[Mikey]

How do you know they didn't?

I'm not sure you're right at all. I bet there were plenty of athletes that weren't happy he was allowed to compete!

Everyone complained, there was uproar about him being allowed back, and I think there was a huge sigh of relief that he did not go on and win.

I am with Lynda though, we cannot have a rule which disadvantages our own athletes over and above all other nations. There should be an Olympic ruling which states that no former banned drug taker be permitted to take part. That is fair and just, but its not where we stand now.

[lynda66]

oh ok maybe i have a short memory and they complained lol

if it was an olympic ruling then fine .... but it isn't ......

[smallblueplanet]

if it was an olympic ruling then fine .... but it isn't ......

I'm sure there's lots of things that aren't olympic rules...

Not only is he a cheat, but he's a whinging cheat who knew the consequences. You may wish to be represented by him to the rest of the world - I don't.

[Mikey]

I'm sure there's lots of things that aren't olympic rules...

Not only is he a cheat, but he's a whinging cheat who knew the consequences. You may wish to be represented by him to the rest of the world - I don't.

Neither do I sbp, but I don't want to see any others there either. Its a very good rule but it should be a rule for all.

[smallblueplanet]

Neither do I sbp, but I don't want to see any others there either. Its a very good rule but it should be a rule for all.

Right. So lets hope the other countries get it right eventually/soon.