Performance Enhancing Drugs In Sports

Performance enhancing drugs, PEDs, need to be incorporated in athletics. If we implement performance enhancing drugs it will allow other people that don’t have the necessary genetics to play sports. People believe that using these substances give athletes an unfair advantage and are taboo and illegal. I believe that we made these drugs legal and freely available that there would be no cheating. People as of this moment in time do well in sports because of the genetic lottery. Sports province with the genetic elite and are unfair to people that are not as lucky to be made like them. One example is that Black Africans are genetically better in short distance running events because of their biologically superior bone structure and muscle type. …show more content…
The following dates are important for the history of PEDs and how they changed athletics. PEDs were first introduced around 776 BC. The first time they were involved in athletics was during the late 19th century by French cyclists and lacrosse players. Starting in 1904, PEDs were used in the Olympic Games. In 1928 the first rule against doping was established by the Association of Athletics Federation, IAAF. In 1958 the FDA approved the first anabolic steroid for sale in the United States. In 1968 the first drug test was administered for the Olympic Games. In 1991 the MLB, major league baseball, banned steroids. In 2000 the US Anti-Doping Agency, USADA, begins operations. In 2007 the NFL announces stricter Anti-doping policies. In 2008 steroids are banned at the Kentucky …show more content…
But what if athletics could be. PEDs could make athletics completely fair. It will make athletes be able to compete at the same level as every other athlete. This will also cut out the genetic lottery. The genetic lottery is pretty much the luck of the draw for the “athletic gene”. Many people are lucky enough to be born good at athletics, but others are not as fortunate. Also, people are born with genetic mutations. Genetic mutations are a permanent alteration in the DNA sequence that makes up a gene, such that the sequence differs from what is found in most people. One person that was born with a genetic mutation is Eero Maentyranta. Eero Maentyranta was a Finnish skier that won seven Olympic medals, three of them being gold. After his Olympic career, Eero was tested and found that he had a genetic mutation that made him have 40-50% more red blood cells. With having more red blood cells, Eero Maentyranta was able to send more oxygen to the muscles. This let Eero compete at a higher ability than his competition and that could be a reason why he was so good at skiing. Another athlete that has an advantage in athletics is Michael Phelps. He has numerous physical endowments that make him able to dominate the sport of swimming. First off, Phelps is 6’4” tall. Usually, a person’s height matches their wingspan, but for Michael Phelps, it does not. Phelps’ wingspan is 6’7” which lets him push through water more efficiently. He also has a

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