Esponda 1

Zachery Esponda
Ms. Gardner
English 10H, Period 2
11 May 2015
Performance Enhancing Drugs: Not so Dope
Sweat constantly beading on his forehead, heart vigorously pumping to fulfill his
physical demands, legs rhythmically moving in a circle as he crosses the finish line and achieves
his seventh Tour de France victory. Lance Armstrong had been looked upon by many as a hero in
the realm of sports. Not only did he overcome his battle with cancer, but he continued to fight
and win the Tour de France seven consecutive times. He was hailed as the greatest athlete in
cycling--until he was convicted of using performance enhancing drugs and stripped of his seven
Tour de France titles. Several athletes of legendary status, such as Lance Armstrong, have
resorted to doping to achieve their great victories. The term doping refers to the use of
performance enhancing drugs (PEDs), which improve the physical abilities of the subject using
them. As the competition among athletes has intensified, the use of PEDs has also increased as
athletes are struggling to gain an edge over their competitor, no matter how minute the advantage
or how dangerous the risk. Doping can not only be harmful and potentially deadly to an athlete,
but it can be crippling to a society, whether that be on or off the field. The increase in use of
PEDs has demoralized the nature of sports; an athlete on the professional level can no longer be
certain that there is a fair fight to be had between them and their opponent. This directly affects
athletes who have not used PEDs as they know they may not out run, out perform, or outlast their
opponents. Doping is also deadly to the public society. With the number of athletes convicted of
doping rising, the public has become more skeptical of their favorite sports stars. A fan can no

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longer be certain that the man or woman they idolize on television is the person they claim to be,
and children are being taught that they must do anything to win, even if that entails doping.
Although PEDs have been proven to aid in recovery and competition, athletes should be
prohibited from using such substances because it obscures the true nature of sports, provides an
unfair advantage, and harbors harmful and potentially deadly consequences.
Initially, one may agree that doping in sports would only improve a sport as well as assist
the athletes in recovery. For example, some fans believe doping would only amplify the
competition among athletes, which in turn produces an exceedingly better show (Legalize
Steroids in Baseball). In addition, scientists have proven that PEDs can assist an athlete in
recovery. Scientists at Tel Aviv University in Israel confirm that PEDs have beneficial qualities
stating, THC produced heightened amounts of chemicals in the brain that actually protects
cells (Fox). Those who support the use of PEDs not only believe that these substances will
improve a sport, but they have also recognized that PEDs can aid an athlete in recovery. Now it
would be foolish to deny that PEDs can be beneficial to a recovering athlete and boost their
competitive edge. However, those who believe PEDs to be acceptable in sports fail to notice the
dangerous repercussions of doping. PEDs should be prohibited in sports as they destroy the
human aspect of the game, give athletes an unfair advantage, and can be harmful, if not deadly,
to ones body.
Indeed it is true that PEDs enhance the competition among athletes and aid them in
recovery and rehabilitation. However, one must consider the fact that PEDs in sports eliminates
the human nature of the game. Tom Murray, a journalist for the Washington Post, states, Any
thoughtful person who plays a sport understands the connection among talent, dedication and
excellence. Doping allows an athlete to become physically enhanced in a way that training

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alone cannot (Bosshardt); no longer does the athlete solely rely on his or her own natural
abilities. The human aspects of a sport are eliminated when athletes extract a piece of themselves
and replace it with a PED. Through doping, these athletes have come to rely on artificial
strength, determination, and stamina. Murray, revealing what it means to embrace yourself in a
sport, again points out that:
the meaning of every sport worth the name, is in the value it fosters, the particular
forms of human excellence it exhibits and the dedication each individual shows in
perfecting his or her natural talents. The rules against doping remind us of whats
valuable about sport. They help us remember why we play.
All people know what is means to be human, and they cannot deny that one must use their
human attributes in order to improve their natural abilities in sports. The use of PEDs in sports
creates an athlete who no longer is purely human. They have falsified themselves by doping and
no longer rely on their dedication, mental strength, or perseverance to become the best they can
be. As a result, one cannot support the use of PEDs in sports because it would only lead to the
dehumanization of the game. With the presence of PEDs, one could no longer watch their
favorite athlete confident that he or she was one hundred percent dedicated in training to reach
the level they were currently at.
In addition to being dehumanizing, PEDs provide an athlete with an unfair advantage
over their opponent. The rules that currently exist in sports do not make it easy for the athlete to
succeed. For example, golfers are not allowed to use clubs that make it easier to hit the ball to the
desired location, and major league baseball players are not allowed to use metal bats (Murray).
With the regulations and rules that preexist in sports, athletes sometimes find it difficult to
measure up to the crowds or their own expectations, thus falling into the hands of PEDs.

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However, many people would rather see an athlete fail than succeed because they doped. In fact,
The Foundation for Global Sports Development reveals that about half of the U.S. adults (51
percent) say knowing that athletes have been caught using performance-enhancing drugs in the
past makes the Olympics less enjoyable, (Survey Reveals). It is clear that the majority of the
public does not desire to watch athletes who have used PEDs compete as it has given them an
unfair advantage over their competitors. Conclusively, the use of PEDs should be prohibited in
sports as it assists the athlete unfavorably.
Ultimately, PEDs should be banned from sports as they have harmful and potentially
deadly consequences for the user. Richard Bosshardt, a journalist for the Orlando Sentinel,
emphasizes the harmful nature of PEDs as he writes, Anabolic steroids, for example, which
stimulate muscle growth, are linked to a number of cancers, premature heart disease, mood
disorders including uncontrolled episodes of rage (roid rage), and more. Although PEDs can
provide an athlete with an advantage, they are extremely harmful and the risk will never
outweigh the reward. The unfortunate truth is that many athletes excuse these health concerns in
order to become a better athlete. The temptation to use PEDs may be great, but The National
Institute on Drug Abuse affirms that Some of the most dangerous consequences that have been
linked to steroid abuse include kidney impairment or failure; damage to the liver; and
cardiovascular problems (DrugFacts: Anabolic Steroids.). There is no doubt that these serious
side effects are damaging to the body and can be potentially deadly. Therefore, PEDs should be
banned in sports because they can be extremely harmful to the athlete.
In conclusion, performance enhancing drugs should be prohibited in sports because they
dehumanize the game, give an athlete an unfair advantage, and are accompanied by several
health concerns. The use of PEDs in sports would only create a game in which human essence is

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tainted, and athletes are no longer the heros one had once made them out to be. Could you
imagine a world in which young athletes contract deadly diseases, a world in which dedicated
training is not applauded, a world in which sports no longer exhibit fair competition among
athletes? This could be the world we live in should we not discourage and prohibit the use of
PEDs.

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Works Cited
Bosshardt, Richard T. Doping Is More Than Just Cheating. Orlando Sentinel. 17 Jul. 2011: J.6.
SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 12 Apr. 2015.
DrugFacts: Anabolic Steroids. DrugFacts: Anabolic Steroids. N.p., July 2012. Web. 26 Apr.
2015.
Fox, Steve. Why the NFL Should Let Players Inhale. Washington Post. 12 Jan. 2014: B.1.
SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 12 Apr. 2015.
Legalize Steroids in Baseball, the Game Will Only Get Better. University Wire. 29 Apr. 2014:
n.p. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 12 Apr. 2015.
Murray, Tom. Why Sports Needs Rules Against Doping. Washington Post. 24 Nov. 2012:
A.15. S IRS Issues Researcher. Web. 12 Apr. 2015.
Survey Reveals That Majority of Americans Believe Olympics Less Business Wire. 28 Jan.
2014: n.p. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 12 Apr. 2015.