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CANBERRA, Australia - A test for human growth hormone could be secretly implemented in time for the Athens Olympics to catch cheaters unaware of the new exam.
Reuters
Slideshow: 2004 Olympics
Australian Sports Drug Agency chief executive John Mendoza said Thursday the World Anti-Doping Agency and the International Olympic Committee (news - web sites) were confident of introducing a test for hGH before the Olympics begin Aug. 13.
"Athletes should be aware that a hGH test could be implemented at any time — and this implementation may not be publicly announced by anti-doping authorities until it is too late for athletes illegally using growth hormone," Mendoza said in a statement.
Mendoza said tests developed last year to detect the steroid THG proved that even the most sophisticated performance-enhancing substances were detectable.
"This development is a wake-up call to athletes who think they can use supposedly undetectable substances with impunity — this is simply no longer the case," he said. "The gap between the anti-doping agencies and well-organized cheats has closed dramatically over the past few years thanks largely to coordinated global investment into finding better substance-detection methods."
Mendoza said samples taken from athletes at the Athens Games would be stored for two years and could be subject to further analysis if new tests to detect performance-enhancing drugs were developed. The penalties for positives in those cases can be imposed at a later date.
Reuters
Slideshow: 2004 Olympics
Australian Sports Drug Agency chief executive John Mendoza said Thursday the World Anti-Doping Agency and the International Olympic Committee (news - web sites) were confident of introducing a test for hGH before the Olympics begin Aug. 13.
"Athletes should be aware that a hGH test could be implemented at any time — and this implementation may not be publicly announced by anti-doping authorities until it is too late for athletes illegally using growth hormone," Mendoza said in a statement.
Mendoza said tests developed last year to detect the steroid THG proved that even the most sophisticated performance-enhancing substances were detectable.
"This development is a wake-up call to athletes who think they can use supposedly undetectable substances with impunity — this is simply no longer the case," he said. "The gap between the anti-doping agencies and well-organized cheats has closed dramatically over the past few years thanks largely to coordinated global investment into finding better substance-detection methods."
Mendoza said samples taken from athletes at the Athens Games would be stored for two years and could be subject to further analysis if new tests to detect performance-enhancing drugs were developed. The penalties for positives in those cases can be imposed at a later date.
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