Persuasive Essay: The Use Of Performance Enhancing Drugs
Although the use of performance enhancing drugs is prohibited, a lifetime ban is unreasonable when one considers the pressures and demands facing professional athletes today. Recent incidents in the news such as the National Rugby League and Lance Armstrong doping scandals have made this a hot topic and increased public awareness. Performance enhancement in sport has been around for a very long time, as far back as ancient Greek Olympians and Roman Gladiators. This essay will explore the following issues and put forth the argument that professional sport people should not be banned for life from playing their sport if they are convicted of using performance enhancing drugs. These issues to be discussed as mentioned above are as follows; the use of performance enhancing drugs in the rehabilitation of injury, the attainment of lifetime goals of the individual including the lures of fame and fortune, the
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Being recognised as the best in their sport, the opportunity to earn millions of dollars every year in prize money and potentially more in sponsorship and endorsement deals may tempt athletes to use performance enhancing drugs. “As prize money and endorsement rewards increased, so did the science and abuse of performance enhancing techniques.” (Baron 2007). Be that as it may, this is not an excuse to use performance enhancing drugs. Being recognised as the best in your sport for skill is one thing, being recognised as the best in your sport because of using performance enhancing drugs is another thing entirely and makes the title false. If the athlete is number one in the world and famous in their sport for using drugs, not because of their natural skill, perseverance and hard work, they don’t deserve the accolades and endorsements they receive. However, is the playing field actually level to begin with? J Savulescu (2004) had this to say on the matter of the widespread performance enhancing drug use in
Being recognised as the best in their sport, the opportunity to earn millions of dollars every year in prize money and potentially more in sponsorship and endorsement deals may tempt athletes to use performance enhancing drugs. “As prize money and endorsement rewards increased, so did the science and abuse of performance enhancing techniques.” (Baron 2007). Be that as it may, this is not an excuse to use performance enhancing drugs. Being recognised as the best in your sport for skill is one thing, being recognised as the best in your sport because of using performance enhancing drugs is another thing entirely and makes the title false. If the athlete is number one in the world and famous in their sport for using drugs, not because of their natural skill, perseverance and hard work, they don’t deserve the accolades and endorsements they receive. However, is the playing field actually level to begin with? J Savulescu (2004) had this to say on the matter of the widespread performance enhancing drug use in