Sha’Carri Richardson would have been a favorite for a medal in Tokyo. The sprinter won the 100 meters in the US Olympic trials. She was then banned from competition for 30 days after testing positive for marijuana use. This forced the 21-year-old from Texas to miss the 2021 Summer Olympics.
“I know what I did,” she told NBC.
Sha’Carri Richardson missed the Tokyo Olympics due to a positive cannabis test
A top athlete who speaks publicly about drug use is about as common as England’s national soccer team to win a penalty shootout. However, it is an open secret that many athletes use cannabis or hemp products. Long-time NBA player Matt Barnes is a former athlete who spoke about his use of the substance.
“I would smoke cannabis six hours before a game. We had a shootout in the morning, I came home and smoked a joint, took a nap, showered, ate and went and played, ”he told the BBC in 2018.
A certain smell
Since Barnes uttered those words, a certain smell has been swirling around US basketball players – to say the least. In full swing in court? Isn’t that a prohibited means of improving performance?
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has announced that it will examine whether cannabis is still on its list of prohibited substances. This follows a request from a number of “stakeholders” to review the status of cannabis on the prohibited list, WADA spokeswoman Maggie Durand told DW.
However, at their most recent board meeting in Istanbul, WADA announced that there would be no changes for 2022, meaning the status quo for the Beijing Winter Olympics will remain in place. This is due to the time it takes to carry out such a review.
Hemp products like CBD oils are available without a prescription
Cannabis is the Latin word for hemp. And even the definition of the term and content is a bit complicated for the layman. After all, hemp products are freely available and are enjoying increasing popularity – for example in the form of CBD oils. In 1999 the International Olympic Committee banned the use of cannabis in its competitions and WADA has joined the ban – at least until now.
“Endanger yourself and others”
According to the doping lexicon of the Institute for Biochemistry in Cologne, the consumption of cannabis “does not actually lead to an improvement in top athletic performance”. The problem lies in another aspect, as sports scientist Mario Thevis from the Center for Preventive Doping Research at the German Sport University Cologne explains.
“The main thing that can be observed is the effectiveness of cannabinoids in limiting one’s own risk assessment, i.e. the situation itself,” the professor told DW.
“If a Formula 1 driver judges the speed only slightly incorrectly, he would endanger himself and others. The same could apply to the skier who does not recognize risks at extremely high speeds, which could be his undoing.”
Mario Thevis from the German Sport University Cologne points out the disadvantages of cannabis consumption by athletes
Proponents of cannabis legalization argue that in addition to its anti-anxiety component, the substance can be helpful in regeneration, muscle relaxation, or pain relief.
This contradicts what the German magazine for sports medicine writes about it: “Although the physical effects of cannabis are relatively small, the increase in heart rate and blood pressure can cause problems. There are known cases where cannabis has caused or promoted “arrhythmias, heart attacks and probably strokes.”
In order to condemn athletes who want to gain a competitive advantage, the doping limit was raised to 150 ng / ml urine.
“Athletes who smoke a joint every now and then without the intention of doping are protected.”
A clear head
For its part, the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) was confident that WADA would decide on this issue “taking into account the latest scientific findings”.
It can therefore be assumed that the researchers and officials in the committees of WADA will keep a clear head.
source https://www.bisayanews.com/2021/09/26/cannabis-in-elite-sports-performing-on-a-high-sports-german-football-and-major-international-sports-news-dw/
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