The greatest threat to international sport isn't the pay offs in Salt Lake City, but the use of dangerous performance-enhancing drugs. Their use threatens the very foundation of sport. The integrity, the image and even the existence of elite-level international competition is in jeopardy. Every world-class event is somehow tainted by "doping", the use of illicit performance-enhancing drugs.
STUDENT DRUG SCREENING
The Board of Education values student athletes not only for their athletic talent but also for their leadership and scholastic abilities. Student athletes, as role models for other students, are a key to our goal of providing the best possible education program for all students. To achieve our goal and to maximize the skills and talents of our students, it is important that every student, and each employee, of our school system understand the dangers of tobacco, drug and alcohol abuse. This policy statement should clarify our position on student athlete tobacco, drug and alcohol use. For the purposes of this policy, school sports teams and cheerleading squads are, therefore, termed student athletes by the Board of Education. In addition, all of these groups perform functions that display them as role models. Participation in extra-curricular activities is a privilege which can be taken away for failure to comply with this policy. The Board reserves the right to depart from this policy where it deems it is appropriate. Except where specifically prohibited by law, the guidelines contained within this document may be changed by the Board at any time. Students covered by this policy will be informed of changes.
It's the spring of the year 2000, and you are looking forward to your first summer of the new Millennium. Baseball season has started, the NBA playoffs are on the horizon, Wimbledon, the French Open, and the US Open are all ahead of you. And best of all, this is an Olympic year. During the fall, your television will be taken over by gymnastics, soccer, softball, and track & field with interesting vignettes telling the amazing stories of sacrifice and hardship leading up to Olympic glory. You even remember, with misty eyed nostalgia, your days as a high school athlete; its not important that it was in the sphere of intramural. YOU WERE A CONTENDER! If you had applied yourself, you too could have been an Olympian. Now, you are a hard working attorney looking forward to a summer of sitting on your couch and watching other great athletes. Little did you know that you would play a part in the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. Isn't life funny?
How do I know if one of my athletes is abusing alcohol, drugs, or both? Assessing a potential alcohol or drug problem is a difficult and often frustrating process. Your influential role as a coach and a confidant, however, places you in a unique position to successfully reach a troubled student.
What should coaches look for? There are many reasons why students may show the following signs and symptoms. The behavior may or may not be alcohol or drug related. When these behavior patterns occur with some regularity and are interfering with the student's performance, it's time to intervene.
Behavioral Patterns:
Actions
Since the June 1995 U. S. Supreme Court ruling in support of random interscholastic student athlete drug testing, more schools then ever before have begun either mandatory, reasonable suspicion or voluntary types of drug testing as they battle drug abuse by their students. By far most student drug testing programs consist of mandatory testing of only student athletes since the U.S. Supreme Court upheld this type of testing. Some schools have begun drug testing all co-curricular students or students wishing to drive to school. This latter action was challenged in Rush County, Indiana, and upheld by the District Court. When appealed to the U. S. Supreme Court they allowed the District Court ruling to stand.
USADA is an independent legal entity not subject to the control of the USOC. The USOC has contracted with USADA to conduct drug testing and results management for participants in the Olympic movement within the United States and to provide educational information to those participants. For the purposes of transmittal of information by USADA, the USOC is USADA’s client/ However, the USOC has authorized USADA to transmit information simultaneously to the relevant National governing Body (“NGB”), International Federation (“IF”) the World Anti-Doping Agency (“WADA”) and involved athlete.
Alcohol and other drug use by college athletes have received increased attention in recent years. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship of collegiate athletes and non-athletes drinking patterns to those of generic alcoholism. The findings revealed a large portion of the college sample, both athlete and non-athlete, reported alcohol dependency as indicated by the scores of the Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST). Additionally, a significant difference was found to exist between males and females with respect to their scores on the MAST.
Data from the 1997-1998 National Basketball Association (NBA) regular season were analyzed to determine factors that best predicted success, as measured by winning percentage. A total of 20 variables were examined. A multiple regression analysis revealed that field goal conversion percentage was the best predictor of success, explaining 61.4% of the variance in winning percentage. The average three-point conversion percentage of the opposing teams explained a further 18.9% of the variance. These two variables combined explained 80.3% of the variance in winning percentage. The finding pertaining to field goal conversion percentage suggest that the attainments of the offense are more important than are the defensive attainments in predicting the success levels of NBA teams. These and other implications are discussed.
*Red numbers indicate references
INTRODUCTION
Significant advances in surgical reconstruction of the anterior
cruciate ligament (ACL) have been made since Jones' described
open reconstruction with the central one-third patellar tendon
in 1963.29 Advancements in technology, arthroscopic instrumentation,
and surgical skills have decreased surgical morbidity while improving
functional outcome.5,
23 Continued technological
and surgical improvements in the 1990's eventually enabled surgeons
to perform ACL reconstructions endoscopically.3, 4, 19, 23, 24, 37
INTRODUCTION
In this Olympic year it is appropriate to consider the roles
that sport play in our societies. While the natural focus of
attention associated with an Olympiad is on "the elite"
of sport, we as administrators in the profession cannot lose
sight of the fact that sport is truly an activity for everyone
in society. Thus it is also appropriate that the focus of this
conference is on sport and social inclusion which is really what
SPORT FOR ALL should be all about.
I have been asked to address the topic of the application of technology to sports equipment. This is difficult to do in 30 minutes but I will attempt to provide an overview of how technology is changing the nature of sport. The discussion of the application of technology in the world of sport can be done in two broad areas: