How many olympians are doping

Kenyan sprinter Mark Otieno Odhiambo also tested positive for an anabolic steroid , Georgian shot putter Benik Abramyan tested positive for steroids and hormone drugs, and 1, meter runner Sadik Mikhou of Bahrain tested positive for a blood transfusion , which is prohibited.

The Athletics Integrity Unit said it has started disciplinary proceedings against the four athletes, but is waiting for the ITA to complete its investigation to find out if doping rules were violated and what the consequences will be. Olympic trials, was disqualified from competing in the race in Tokyo after her drug test results came back positive for THC, a chemical in cannabis.

The Athletics Integrity Unit said it had barred 18 athletes who were heading to the Tokyo Olympic games from competing because they violated anti-doping rules.

Some ancient athletes even tried chewing on raw animal testicles and hearts for an extra edge. The organisers did, however, introduce measures to ensure fair starting conditions and punished athletes caught cheating and using illegal tactics. The organisers were more focused on the sporting events rather than athletes using drugs. Modern athletes used alcohol, amphetamines and strychnine while competing in events such as marathons. The IOC only banned the use of performance-enhancing drugs in , just before the first version of random drug testing was used at the Olympics in Mexico City.

The tragic death of Danish cyclist Knud Enemark Jensen at the Olympics — initially thought to have been caused by amphetamine use — had helped drive the introduction of drug testing. But anti-doping efforts continued to become an important issue in the sporting world. The key considerations for banning doping were to protect the health of athletes taking substances and to ensure a fair playing field. The testing started on a small scale, but it was not long before it claimed its first doper, Swedish modern pentathlete Hans-Gunnar Liljenwall.

But he was not caught for taking steroids or speed, instead for a couple of sneaky beers he had before his shooting event to try to calm his nerves. Liljenwall nailed the shooting portion of the competition, and the Swedish team was able to claim a bronze medal in the team event until it was later stripped from them.

Unsurprisingly, beer was rapidly overtaken as the substance of choice, with the wisdom of the Ancient Greeks being the basis for a surprising advancement in performance-enhancing drugs. It turns out those early Olympians may have been onto something when they were eating the testicles of animals. In , American chemist Fred Koch discovered what we know now as testosterone, sparking a series of rapid new developments in the area.

The impact of testosterone, and the broader group of steroids, has cast a vast shadow over sport ever since. By the Games, rumours spread the Soviet weightlifters were experimenting with substances to improve their performance. It took years for a reliable test for testosterone to be developed, and by then there were many new substances on the market, as well as experimentation with blood doping.

All of these rules have made life much harder for athletes, but their impact appears to be fairly minimal in reducing interest in performance-enhancing drugs.

The obvious question is whether we just have to live with a certain amount of doping in sport. Given the last time an Olympics was without a doping controversy was the middle of the 20th century, it would seem so. That does not mean we should stop protecting the integrity of sport. Rather, it is a recognition that anti-doping is just one part of this effort.

As an international leader in anti-doping measures, Australia established Sport Integrity Australia last year to replace the standalone Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority. This move explicitly recognises that doping is part of a much bigger picture that includes match fixing and abuse of athletes. Read more: Banned from the Olympics for a bad burrito? Russia's athletes compete under the name ROC and are forbidden to use their flag and anthem following massive doping scandals that marred the Sochi winter Olympics and kept almost the entire Russian track and field team out of the Rio Games.

Unusually for the Olympics, there has yet to be a public announcement of a doping case after more than a week of competitions, though the procedure has changed from previous Games and it could take longer before any are officially announced. Doping has been a major concern for the International Olympic Committee and Games organisers at past Olympics, with many cases during the 16 days of competition.