Monday, August 07, 2006

Well, I Should Certainly Hope So

Italics, mine. Missing detail, theirs. (Warning: You may require oxygen after reading these examples.)

Calgary Herald:
Diack's proposal came a few days after the news that Olympic and world 100-metre champion Justin Gatlin had tested positive for testosterone, dealing a serious blow to the showcase Olympic sport.

London Daily Telegraph:
Gatlin, the world and Olympic champion who tested positive for testosterone in April, is expected to have his case heard by the US Anti-Doping Agency today and should expect a life ban if he is found guilty of a doping offence.

Agence France-Presse:
Last week, joint world 100m record holder Justin Gatlin tested positive for testosterone and is currently facing the prospect of a life ban.

Washington Post:
In May, American sprinter Justin Gatlin equaled the world record in the 100 meters; last month, he revealed he had tested positive for testosterone.

8 comments:

Leonard said...

I have to admit that I would probably test positive for testosterone as well. My only defense is that it's a guy thing.

Ghani said...

Thank you, this one has been driving me crazy!

Josh said...

I'm shortly heading to London, accompanying New Zealand's Wushu (Chinese Martial Arts) team to the World Wushu Championships. Among the rules for the sparring competitions at the event is this gem:

A competitor ... who inhales oxygen during interval will be disqualified from the whole competition and his or her result(s) will be cancelled.

That's pretty harsh.

Unknown said...

Oh my gosh. You realize what this means, don't you? The chances are that every male athlete in the history of sports is guilty of doping.

LaurieM said...

Squirrel boy, they aren't guilty of doping necessarily, just guilty of testing positive for testosterone and that is something the female athletes are guilty of too.

Bill said...

Yes, yes, we all have testosterone and estrogen -- sometimes referred to as "half-and-half."

Unknown said...

I was joking. If "testing positive for testosterone" is indicative of doping, then all male athletes—and yes, female athletes, too—are theoretically guilty of doping. Of course, it's not funny if I have to explain it. :p

Doug Sundseth said...

IANAD, but my understanding is that an athlete can be charged with testosterone doping if his testosterone level is abnormally high, if his ratio of testosterone to epitestosterone is far from 1:1, or if the ratio of Carbon-13 to Carbon-12 in his testosterone is too high.

Given the complexity of the issue, and in the absence of more specific information in a particular case, "Xxx has been charged with testosterone doping" might be an appropriate phrasing. In other contexts, perhaps: "Tests indicated that Xxx had an abnormal testosterone level, suggesting he used illicit, performance-enhancing drugs."

Of course, in some cases, "abnormal testosterone level" might better be replaced with "abnormal-testosterone level", but that might be an acceptable level of ambiguity.