Doping Appeal Denied; ‘06 Tour de France Title Lost

Adding insult to injury, the Court of Arbitration for Sport handed down a tough decision on Floyd Landis and literally made him pay. After being denied his appeal, the cyclist was roundly criticized in the decision and ordered to hand over $100,000 towards the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency legal fees.

This is the second setback for Landis, who was stripped of his 2006 Tour de France championship after testing positive for testosterone. All told, he has spent more than $2 million of his own and fundraiser’s money on his appeals, all for naught. When you look into this case further, it is apparent that Landis never had a prayer and looks like an anti-doping punching bag. Continue Reading »

Subway and Freeway Series’ Finales Both Gems

For all the things wrong with Major League Baseball’s Interleague play, weekends like this past one can make them all go away and give the fans what they want. The purists of the game will say that it’s all for money, and while that may be a part of the reason, pleasing the fans was the main objective. These are the games that they want to see, and the last scheduled date for Interleague match-ups was filled with rivalry contests for the ages.

Out at Shea Stadium, the Mets took the battle of New York, four games to two, with a solid 3-1 win over the crosstown Yankees behind lefty Oliver Perez. Out on the left coast, the Angels were able to make a 1-0 lead stand after being shut out in the previous two games. Not to be undone, the Chicago Civil War came to a close with the South Siders sweeping after being swept. Continue Reading »

One Letter Away From Gear Names Grab Attention

Winni-V. D-Bol. Anodrol. Sustenol 250. Deca Nor 50. Somatroph HGH. Test Suspension. Sound familiar? Close enough to some of those names that you’ve heard going back and forth in the gym? The websites that sell this stuff even call the use of them as ‘cycles’ and when they suggest more than one, ’stacking.’

Over the years, especially since the whole country has gone overboard with the specter of performance-enhancing drugs effecting our sports, there has been a sort of daring curiosity to know more about them and even test the waters. Due to the negative attention and law enforcement intervention, the real deal has taken a back seat to what the supplement companies have christened “legal steroids.” These items have names that are so close to the ‘taboo’ drugs that many have felt as is they were buying something that could get them arrested for possessing. The bottles even look like the same ones that hold real anabolic steroids. Coincidence? Continue Reading »

Julie Coram Stripped of Recent FAME Title

They say the best place to hide a tree is in the forest, but how does that transcend in the world of women’s fitness competitions? Female bodybuilders have obviously used heavy doses of anabolic steroids and not many would be surprised if one of the Ms. Olympia competitors tested positive. It was supposed to be a different story when the other women ’s categories came into play. Fitness and Figure classifications were viewed differently, but that may have changed.

Julie Coram’s positive test for three different types of anabolic steroids may have - fairly or unfairly - changed the public’s perception on the sports. A urine sample taken after she won the female muscle model category at the Ainsley McSorley FAME Model Search Championships in Winnipeg, Manitoba on May 24 revealed high levels of boldenone, oxandrolone and DHEA. Continue Reading »

“The Blade” is Coming Off Three Strong 2008 Victories

After finishing in third place in the 2007 Mr. Olympia, 38 year-old Dexter Jackson knows that the window of opportunity may be closing on him. In September, he will give it another go, this time coming off three consecutive first place finishes in the calendar year.

Earlier, Jackson won the Arnold Classic, IFBB Australian Grand Prix VIII and the IFBB New Zealand Grand Prix. While that is a nice accomplishment, the Mr. O is a whole different world. Continue Reading »

…But Was That Just A Convenient Excuse?

It comes down to what you really believe. After opening up a can of worms, former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw did a little damage control. Appearing during the press conference introducing the recently retired Michael Strahan to the FOX NFL crew, Bradshaw did his best to backtrack from his comments last week during a radio interview with Dan Patrick, most likely after bunkering down with FOX executives.

“I’m not bodybuilding here,” he said. “They were not that kind of steroids. They were anti-inflammatories.” Trying to pass off his earlier comments as though he meant cortisone shots is like Bill Clinton saying that he smoked marihuana, but didn’t inhale. All athletes - even ones that come across as unintelligent as Bradshaw - know what a cortisone shot is and not call it a ’steroid,’ especially in today’s paranoid sports world. Continue Reading »

Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl Quarterback Admits Use in the 1970s

It’s been stated before, and if need be, will be again. Steroids are merely ‘part of the game.’ That was shown to ring true once again when Terry Bradshaw admitted in an interview that he and other players on the Pittsburgh Steelers championship teams used steroids.

Bradshaw indicated during an interview with Dan Patrick on ESPN Radio that the drugs were obtained from a doctor’s prescription and were used to “get away the aches and pains” and to “speed up the healing process,” and that they were not taken to get “bigger and stronger and faster.” When referring to the use of steroids, Bradshaw used the term “we.” Continue Reading »

5th Place Finish in ’07 for Young German

Dennis Wolf will not turn 30 years of age until the month after the upcoming 2008 Mr. Olympia contest in Las Vegas on September 28. The up and coming bodybuilder finished in fifth place last year, and although his official website states that he was “proud to have finished” in that spot, some observers felt that he had enough to place higher.

Moving up 11 spots in one year – and only his second time competing for the Sandow Trophy – Wolf has made quite an impression in a short period of time. Last September, the 5’11” German followed Cutler around the stage during the pose down, and giving the incumbent a run for his money.

Expect Wolf to be a major factor at the Orleans Hotel and give not only Cutler a run for his money, but Dexter Jackson and the rest of the field, as well. A top-three finish for Wolf is not only likely, but should be expected. Continue Reading »

Kaczur Wired for Sound in A TV-Type Script

When the Drug Enforcement Agency wants you, they’ll go through painstaking steps to get you. Even if that means ‘flipping’ a 6′4″, 315-pound offensive lineman. Nick Kaczur, right tackle of the New England Patriots, allegedly wore a recording device to gather evidence against a Massachusetts dealer in three separate purchases of the painkiller OxyContin.

Although he was not named in the court documents due to keeping the confidentiality of informants, the lawyer for Daniel Ekasala stated that the 28 year-old NFL player was in fact the person involved. This stemmed from Kaczur’s arrest in April on possession of the illegal painkiller oxycodone. Continue Reading »

Hearings on Capitol Hill Should Hasten Rule Across the Board by 2009

By next year, horse racing will become just another sport with a ban on anabolic steroids. During the Congressional hearings on Thursday, a common theme was that everyone was in agreement that the ban should take place.

According to Jockey Club President Alan Marzelli, the organization’s safety panel called for the ban on all steroids, and they are confident that 2008 will be the last year to allow the use of such drugs.

Jack Van Berg, a Hall of Fame trainer, testified that thoroughbred racing has become “chemical warfare.”

“The present rules permitting the use of steroids and other drugs have compromised the integrity of horse racing and has been a major factor in attendance and for interest falling to an all-time low,” said Van Berg.

Taking nothing away from a man with his credentials, it is hard to believe that fans of the sport, and mainly gamblers, would not want to attend because one or more of the horses are juiced up. Quite the contrary, that would probably make the interest wider, making someone think that their horse that ‘had their Wheaties’ will be a sure thing. Continue Reading »