2008 Woodie Awards
Steroids still exist
By: Jillian Hanks
Issue date: 5/21/08 Section: Sports
In 1998, he was compared to baseballs greats Babe Ruth and Roger Maris and was hailed as one of the most celebrated players of all time.
Four years after his retirement, Mark McGwire's image was tarnished.
In a nationally televised March 17, 2005, meeting with the House Committee on Oversight and Government reform, McGwire's repeated statement of, "I'm not here to talk about the past," was replayed on televisions and quoted in newspapers around the world.
Three years later, the MLB is still plagued by the use of performance-enhancing drugs by well-known players. Congress continues to hold meetings in an attempt to find a solution to a problem that has allegedly been around for more than two decades.
The extra attention applied to the MLB and performance-enhancing drug use traveled over to the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
In 1986, the NCAA created its drug testing program. Since its start, the program has expanded to include year-round drug testing for Division I and Division II athletes.
Partially prompted by the MLB steroid scandal, the NCAA increased its drug-testing program to include the summer months starting in June 2006. It focused primarily on baseball and football.
"We are emphasizing baseball now more than we did in the past, say four or five years ago," Andrea Wickerham, vice president of The National Center for Drug Free Sport, said.
The National Center for Drug Free Sport is the third-party administrator for drug testing for the NCAA. It oversees the operation of drug testing nationwide, Wickerham said.
Besides the NCAA, Drug Free Sport oversees drug testing for professional sports leagues, minor league baseball, and limited work with the NFL and MLB. This year it will test the top 200 MLB draft prospects in which case most are college players.
In the past few years, Wickerham has noticed an increase in the number of athletes tested at the college and professional level.
Four years after his retirement, Mark McGwire's image was tarnished.
In a nationally televised March 17, 2005, meeting with the House Committee on Oversight and Government reform, McGwire's repeated statement of, "I'm not here to talk about the past," was replayed on televisions and quoted in newspapers around the world.
Three years later, the MLB is still plagued by the use of performance-enhancing drugs by well-known players. Congress continues to hold meetings in an attempt to find a solution to a problem that has allegedly been around for more than two decades.
The extra attention applied to the MLB and performance-enhancing drug use traveled over to the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
In 1986, the NCAA created its drug testing program. Since its start, the program has expanded to include year-round drug testing for Division I and Division II athletes.
Partially prompted by the MLB steroid scandal, the NCAA increased its drug-testing program to include the summer months starting in June 2006. It focused primarily on baseball and football.
"We are emphasizing baseball now more than we did in the past, say four or five years ago," Andrea Wickerham, vice president of The National Center for Drug Free Sport, said.
The National Center for Drug Free Sport is the third-party administrator for drug testing for the NCAA. It oversees the operation of drug testing nationwide, Wickerham said.
Besides the NCAA, Drug Free Sport oversees drug testing for professional sports leagues, minor league baseball, and limited work with the NFL and MLB. This year it will test the top 200 MLB draft prospects in which case most are college players.
In the past few years, Wickerham has noticed an increase in the number of athletes tested at the college and professional level.
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