Athletes have to face many challenges in the athletic community – from competition to managing their reputation and brand effectively, as well as being a representative of the sport. These are all good things, but what about bringing notice to an issue affecting the sport, or be a whistleblower?
Dwain Chambers
Well, there is an interesting case that has been happening the last couple of months involving British track athlete Dwain Chambers. Chambers was in the news a few years ago after testing positive for THG in 2003 and now is back in track competition mode. However, Chambers was being investigatred by the International Association of Athletic Federations (IAAF) after writing an autobiography on his experiences in track, using performance enhacing drugs and his routine, and potentially disclosing other athletes that were using performance enhancing drugs. It was announced recently that Chambers will not be charged by the IAAF due to his book.
There are so many issues that come into play with this situation. First, Chambers appears to acknowledge that he was in the wrong about his own personal reasons for taking performance enhancing drugs, and wants to bring this issue to the forefront of the track and field community. What is interesting is how the IAAF has taken such a strong stand on this issue – they are known for having a strong stance on anti-drugs in competition, but they go out of their way to try to get Chambers charged for releasing his book?
Track’s reputation has been significantly impacted with its association with athletes using steroids and other drugs in competition – and the Chambers case appears to show how inner politics, reputation measures, and and image come into play. In order to restore the reputation of track – there needs to be more exposure to those that are using performance enhancing drugs and breaking the rules – and that goes towards athletes, coaches, support staff, and organizations.
This is an issue of free speech among athletes and an interesting case study to look at. Hope you all are having a great day. 🙂
Best Wishes,
Karen
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