Even the holy Olympics is a sham........"Ex-USOC medical official claims cover-up
ESPN.com news services
SYDNEY, Australia -- U.S. Olympic athletes commonly used banned drugs and the U.S.
Olympic Committee covered up positive tests, the U.S. Olympic Committee's former
medical chief alleged in a sworn affidavit.
Dr. Robert Voy, chief medical officer from 1983 to 1989, also said the USOC had no
interest in curbing the use of such drugs. Its doping program, he said, encouraged the
use of performance-enhancing drugs.
The allegations are contained in a signed affidavit filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court
in Denver. A copy of the document was obtained by The Associated Press.
"Based on my experience and expertise, I believe the use of performance enhancing
drugs is common among American Olympic-level athletes," Voy said.
"Based on my experience and expertise, I believe that the USOC and/or the various
NGBs (national governing bodies) have covered up evidence of American Olympic level
athletes testing positive for banned performance enhancing drugs."
The affidavit was submitted in support of Dr. Wade Exum, the USOC's former director of
drug control programs. Exum filed a federal suit in July against the USOC, accusing the
organization of encouraging the doping of athletes.
The USOC, which has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, dismissed Voy's allegations.
"I always thought affidavits were supposed to be based on facts," said Scott Blackmun,
the USOC's former general counsel and current senior managing director for sports
resources. "That affidavit appears to represent opinions not facts."
"He's painting a very misleading picture," Blackmun said. "There's no indication of a
coverup by the USOC or anybody else. He's going to have to come up with some facts. In
my view, he's come up with absolutely nothing."
Reached by telephone in Las Vegas and asked to elaborate on his allegations, Voy said:
"I'm not going to comment. It's a legal affidavit. I'm going to leave it at that."
Disclosure of Voy's court statement comes at a time when the credibility of the entire
U.S. drug testing system is under intense scrutiny at the Sydney Games.
The Orange County Register reports that court documents show U.S. Olympic-caliber
athletes tested positive 207 times for banned performance-enhancing substances in 1999,
but only 10 of those tests led to suspensions by the USOC or the specific sport's national
governing body.
The records reveal that 158 of the positive tests in the U.S. Olympic Committee's
anti-doping program were for stimulants, 29 for anabolic steroids and 20 for other banned
substances. U.S. track athletes accounted for 33 of the positive tests, five of which were
for anabolic steroids. Nineteen cyclists tested positive.
A large number of the positive tests in 1999 were the results of Salbutamol, an asthma
drug; Ritalin, an amphetamine used to treat Attention Deficit Disorder; and ephedrine,
another stimulant found in some over-the-counter cold medications.
Many of the positive tests for the asthma drug may not have led to a USOC suspension
because the athlete had a medical waiver. However, it's also true that some sports have
an unusually high number of asthma waivers. Some 98 percent of international triathletes,
for example, have waivers. Only 12 to 15 percent of the world population is asthmatic.
Other confidential USOC documents obtained by the Register revealed that just before
the start of the 2000 Sydney Games, the U.S. shut down a random, unannounced
drug-testing program aimed at eliminating the use of banned performance enhancing
substances by Olympic-caliber American athletes.
The documents were filed as part of former USOC doping control director Wade Exum's
lawsuit against the USOC in which he alleges American athletes testing positive at U.S.
Olympic Trials were allowed to compete -- and in some cases win -- medals at previous
Olympics.
USA Track & Field has been accused of suppressing up to 15 positive tests in the past
two years. News that shot putter C.J. Hunter, husband of sprint superstar Marion Jones,
failed four separate drug tests in Europe this summer was confirmed only after media
leaks.
USATF, which has denied any cover-ups, has commissioned an independent panel to
examine the federation's drug-testing procedures. It has also offered to turn over its entire
doping control programs to the World Anti-Doping Agency.
"Our credibility has been under attack," USATF executive director Craig Masback said
Saturday. "The reputation of the U.S. Olympic team, in particular the track and field
athletes, has been besmirched. This is wrong."
Masback said the commission, headed by Canadian law professor and arbitrator Richard
McLaren, would review USATF's testing records from Jan. 1, 1999, to the start of the
Sydney Games on Sept. 15. He said the inquiry would be privately funded.
Masback declined to comment on specifics of the Hunter case, other than to say, "We
believe we have followed the proper legal course."
Exum filed suit on July 18, charging that USOC leaders hampered his anti-drug battle and
denied him promotions and opportunities because he is black. He also claimed the
USOC evaded its responsibility to screen and discipline athletes for drugs in its quest to
win medals.
Exum, who has not identified specific athletes, said the proof will come out in court. He
said he knows of competitors who tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs in
Olympic trials and went on to win medals. He said that about half the U.S. athletes who
have tested positive for prohibited substances have gone unpunished.
The thrust of Exum's allegations were supported in Voy's affidavit.
"The USOC's doping control program is generally perceived by those in the sports
medicine community to contribute to an environment that encourages the use of
performance enhancing drugs by Olympic level athletes," Voy said in court papers.
"Despite the USOC's representations to the contrary, the USOC's conduct indicates that
it is not seriously interested in reducing the use of performance enhancing drugs.
"I believe that the USOC publicly represents that it is committed to eliminating the use of
banned performance enhancing drugs in Olympic sport, but that in reality it has pursued
policies that ignore the use of banned performance enhancing drugs among American
Olympic level athletes."
Blackmun said he had contacted Voy three months ago to ask about any weaknesses in
the U.S. doping control system.
"Basically he said he didn't think the USOC was taking doping seriously," Blackmun
said. "But when I asked him whether the USOC has acted inappropriately and failed to
disclose positive tests, he said, 'No.'
"It's one thing to say we don't have an effective program, and quite another to say we have
actively concealed results. I don't find any evidence of that and he didn't provide any
evidence of that."
Blackmun said Exum had offered to resign from his USOC post nine months ago, saying
he would not sue the organization on condition that it paid him $5.5 million.
Blackmun said the offer was made in late December or early January when Exum's job
was put in jeopardy by an independent U.S. anti-doping agency that was being created to
handle athletes' tests.
"He basically threatened us with exposure on all kinds of unspecified reasons," Blackmun
said. "Through his lawyers, he said he would keep the allegations to himself if we paid
him $5.5 million. He has said his principle interest in all this is to help clean up the
doping program. I think his demand for $5.5 million speaks for itself."
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report. |
