posted October 17, 2003
Altitude Tents are meant to substitute living at altitude.
Is living in Colorado illegal ?
Using these products without medical surveillance, that's negligence. Not having a physician monitor your hematocrit, if you are using a tent, that's carelessness and leads to international embarassment.
Athletes do not inject themselves with iron because they sleep in a tent. If someone has low hematocrit, physicians may prescribe additional iron.
Athletes also use injectable B12 vitamins. Is that illegal also ? The banned substance manual and the UCI, USADA don't seem to think so.
Some substances provide enhanced performance giving athletes advantages over athletes who don't use these substances. That's illegal. These substances can cause long term damage to their health, possibly increased risk of stroke, atherosclerosis. That's foolishness. Can't study long term effect on people who legaly use EPO. They usually die of cancer within 5 years of using the stuff. Long term effects are unknown. Who knows what happens when you take growth hormones ? You need bigger shoes probably.
These athletes are putting their lives at risk so you can enjoy watching them break work records, the ultimate athletes. They want or need to win at all cost.
Because they won't have money to put food on the table if they don't. In many cases in Europe that is the only way to survive. Many Canadians quit before they go over the edge. Ohters struggle for years until they finally crack and buy a tent.
How about the athlete who has access to substances that provide increased performance but this product is not even released to the general public. It's still in clinical trials! The big pharmaceuticals experiment. Your doctor can't prescribe it. UCI can't test for it. Yet I bet you think these people are gods and have incredible talent. Oh, and by the way, that's legal and they never test positive !
If the Canadian sports association and CCA really cared for the athletes instead of their well paid jobs with cushy pensions, with the occasional trip to Europe, they would instituted a program for our athletes. And I don't mean a drug program where you eat special cereals. I mean real help. Athletes on national teams should get help with health care (you know what Welfare cases get, minimum cab fare to get their case of Labatts or Blue) dental, vison care, drug plan to cover purchase of antibiotics, asthma medication. You know what we all take for granted, does not include things for allergies that's banned ! A sports program like they have in Australia where athletes get to see nutritionists (real ones), physios, trained sports psychologists, not self proclaimed book peddlers. This type of assistance is what the sports training centers in Bromont and Victoria should provide. And you should have access to it even if you don't live in these cities. Athletes shouldn't have to move there to participate. Athletes who represent Canada at international events should get a pension pro-rated for the years they served. Like war veterans ! I'm not going to talk about civil cervants or politicians.
We might actually start getting results internationaly, which would elevate these athletes at home and generate the excitement and funding needed to run development programs. Maybe even a Canadian racing program.
Did you like it when Becky Scott won a medal in cross country skiing at the winter Olympics last year ? Do you know how she did it. Lots of hard training and an altitude tent. The only legal way to compete against drugs !
Helene
put on line by SVP
