Drugs in sport

Drugs have become synonymous with sport over the last few years. Athletes have started looking for ways to rise above the competition, and drugs are the answer!

Just a few years back and doping was at an all time high. Many many athletes were taking drugs and only very few were actually caught. Six of the first nine finishers in the Women's Olympic 1500m final in 2012 were all on performance enhancing drugs!!

To compete at this level, it looks like performance enhancing drugs are a must!! Thankfully in athletics the IAAF have been working hard recently to ensure a fair playing field for all, and it's working with less athletes now doping! However it's impossible to catch them all and no matter what you do, cheats will always find a way to breach the rules.....

What if the IAAF just let everyone use performance enhancing drugs??

Since they can't stop all athletes from cheating are they better of to just let everyone cheat and therefore ensure a level playing field?

The IAAF was made to protect the athlete and ensure the sport of athletics is functioning properly. Performance enhancing drugs may give you an athletic edge but your career won't last as long as it should! In the long run they are very bad for your body and ultimately leads to a shorter life! Athletics would not be safe at the elite level if all the athletes were doping regularly and would but athletes off the sport who want to reach the elite level!!

Also, if everybody was allowed to cheat many runners wouldn't be able to afford it! Performance enhancing drugs such as EPO are very expensive leaving poorer athletes and athletic federations and disadvantage causing corruption in athletics!!

So what should the IAAF to do further prevent doping??

Doping is a crime in athletics and the only way to scare away these cheaters is to make the punishments more severe! A few years break from athletics isn't harsh enough and allows past dopers to compete and win medals they don't deserve. A lifetime ban from athletics seems fitting to me as this will make athletes think twice about taking drugs. It may seem harsh and unfair, but athletes know what they're taking and they will know the consequences if caught.

The IAAF are doing a great job in recent times to cancel out drug cheats and make the sport much cleaner!! Progress still needs to be made but action is being taken!