Banning Drugs in Sports: Does it Do More Harm Than Good? - Desklib

DRUG AND SPORT 1
Banning Drugs does more harm than Good in Sport; Discussion
Name of the Student
Institution
Course
Professor
Date

DRUG AND SPORT 2
Introduction
Australia has a history of doping and drug related controversies in sports1. In Australia, using
drugs for heightened sporting performance is termed as drug abuse2. This makes Australia be at
the forefront in the fight against drugging in all kinds of sporting activities3. The country was
among the pioneers to establish a sports anti-doping agency and is also an affiliate of the World
Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)4. John Fahey, who was re-elected as the President of WADA
between 2010- 2013, is, in fact, an Australian citizen5. The provisions by law regarding this
subject matter (doping) are based on the concerns of competition and health-related issues6. The
community views this kind of drug use as cheating as undermining the public image of sports
1 Stephen Watt, "Drugs In Sport", Australian Academy Of Science; Curious (Webpage,
2015) <https://www.science.org.au/curious/people-medicine/drugs-sport> accessed 22 May
2019.
2 Victoria Wark, 'All For One And One For All ... For How Much Longer?: How Wada
Could Tackle Doping In Professional Team Sport' (2014) 9 Australian and New Zealand Sports
Law Journal
<https://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary;dn=706976325894355;res=IELNZC>
accessed 22 May 2019.
3 Elise Parham, "Australia And The World Anti-Doping Code, 1999–
2008", Wada (Webpage, 2008) <http://A Study Of The Role Of The Australian Government And
Australian Public Service In Drafting And Implementing The World Anti-Doping Code>
accessed 22 May 2019.
4 Australian Government, "Prohibited Substances and Methods | Australian Sports Anti-
Doping Authority - ASADA," Asada.Gov.Au (Webpage, 2019)
<https://www.asada.gov.au/substances/prohibited-substances-and-methods> accessed 22 May
2019.
5 "John Fahey to Remain WADA President until the End Of 2013 (21 November
2010)", World Anti-Doping Agency (Webpage, 2010)
<https://www.wada-ama.org/en/media/news/2010-11/john-fahey-to-remain-wada-president-
until-the-end-of-2013> accessed 22 May 2019.
6 Terry Black, "Does The Ban On Drugs In Sports Improve Societal Welfare?" (1996)
31(4) International Review for the Sociology of Sport. 367-381

DRUG AND SPORT 3
and its value as a driver for health, economic and social good7. This is the reason Australian
ministers and sports officials have taken strong measures on drug use in sport and with zero
tolerance approach. The Senate Drugs in Sports inquiry held in 1989-1990, led to the
establishment of the Australian Sports Drug Agency via the Australian Sports Drug Agency Act
19908. The Agency was later replaced by the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority (ASADA)
in 2006. ASADA was given increased powers to conduct investigations, present cases at sporting
tribunals, acclaim sanctions and commend and regulate sporting organizations anti-doping
policies9. ASADA has been given even more power by the Australian Sports Anti-Doping
Authority Amendment Bill 2013 on matters of investigation10. As a result, ASADA can now
compel those believed to be violators of doping rules and regulations to attend a mandatory
interview and provide the sporting tribunal with related documents. Lack of compliance to such
calls result into civil penalties11. All these points go on to highlight the harshness with which the
Australian legal framework deals with drug-enhanced sporting activities. Recently, there are
controversial views that the Australian Sports Drug Agency Act 1990 could be outdated and that
banning of some “legal highs” is unnecessary and with some negative consequences. This
research papers critically examines and discusses whether the prohibition of drugs in sports does
7 Jeff Cisyk, "What’S The Economic Impact of Doping in Sport?” World Economic
Forum (Webpage, 2015) <https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/07/whats-the-economic-
impact-of-doping-in-sport/> accessed 22 May 2019.
8 Australian Sports Drug Agency Act 1990
9 Australian Government, "Rule Violation Management Process | Australian Sports Anti-
Doping Authority - ASADA," Asada.Gov.Au (Webpage, 2019)
<https://www.asada.gov.au/rules-and-violations/rule-violation-management-process> accessed
22 May 2019.
10 Kate Lunday, "Important New Anti-Doping Powers for ASADA Pass-through
Parliament | ..." Archive.Is (Webpage, 2013)
<https://archive.is/20130629090534/http:/www.katelundy.com.au/2013/06/27/important-new-
anti-doping-powers-for-asada-pass-through-parliament/>accessed 22 May 2019.
11 Samantha Lane, "New Bill Would Bolster Anti-Doping Body", The Sydney Morning
Herald (Webpage, 2013) <https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/new-bill-would-bolster-anti-
doping-body-20130206-2dz2s.html>.

DRUG AND SPORT 4
more good than harm in sports with reference to the legal framework established under the
Australian Sports Drug Agency Act 1990.
Background Study
“In most anti-doping cases athletes are convicted through an ‘analytical positive’: the presence of
a banned substance or its metabolites in a sample of the athlete’s body fluid”12.
10 years before the establishment of the Australian Sports Drug Agency Act, in Australia, the
main concern was about the unfettered use of stimulants and anabolic steroids13. The 1990’s
restrictions were that illicit drugs were added to the list of forbidden substances, even though the
ban only confined in-competition use only, not recreational use and out-of-competition use14. In
the 2000s, there were rising demands to make the use of illicit drugs an offense throughout the
year based on the concerns of enhanced sports performance15. Today, the prospect of sports
officials controlling prescription drug use is by telling athletes and their medical advisors what to
do to manage anxiety, over-arousal, and insomnia16. The illicit drugs in sport policy (I.D.S.P.)
was launched as a chain of significant new measures that were thought to take the ban in drug
abuse to another whole new level in the control of enhanced sporting performance17. One of the
perceived harsh provisions of the I.D.S.P. was that ASADA would include drug testing outside
12 David Thorpe, 'The Evidential Gap in the Essendon Doping Case and Its Continuing
Influence on Sport Arbitration' (2019) 10 Australian and New Zealand Sports Law Journal.
1<https://search.informit.com.au/documentSummary;dn=924976402959500;res=IELHSS>
accessed 22 May 2019.
13 The Conversation, "Bitter Pill: Have Drug Bans In Australian Sport Gone Too
Far?", The Conversation (Webpage, 2012) <https://theconversation.com/bitter-pill-have-drug-
bans-in-australian-sport-gone-too-far-8291>. accessed 22 May 2019.
14 Anne Amos, Chris Davies and Saul Fridman, 'Should Athletes Be Tested For
Recreational Drugs? Three Sporting Federations Kick Around The Proverbial Football' (2007) 2
Australian and New Zealand Sports Law Journal,
<http://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/ANZSportsLawJl/2007/3.pdf> accessed 22 May 2019.
15 Ibid (n 14)
16 Jason Mazanov, Managing Drugs In Sport (Routledge, 2017). 4-18
17 Mohammed Al Ghobain, 'The Use Of Performance-Enhancing Substances (Doping) By
Athletes In Saudi Arabia' (2017) 24 Journal of Family and Community Medicine. 151-155