Discussion

Here, we will help you by describing and discussing doping in modern sports, as well as arguments for and against legalising it. We will base our discussion on both the video clip and the text in your source material.

Comment on the quotation

In your discussion about doping in modern sports, you are invited to analyse and comment on the following quote found in the article by James Kirkup: “Banning a competitor for having better chemicals in his blood than the rest makes as much sense as banning him for having better shoes”.

The quotation you have to analyse and comment upon is related to Kirkup’s opinion that modern sports are unfair. He states elsewhere in the article that, in general, the athletes with the best resources are the ones who win competitions.

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Doping in modern sports

Doping in sports refers to the use of performance-enhancing drugs that some athletes use to boost their performance, although these drugs are banned by most sports organisations.

The CNN video clip (Text I) explains that performance-enhancing drugs are taken by the athletes who want to improve different aspects related to the sport they compete in: strength, endurance, etc. Of course, some athletes resort to doping, while others simply rely on their hard-work. The CNN Senior Medical Correspondent explains that authorities began trying to stop doping in the 1960s, but that they have not been entirely successful.

When it comes to detecting and stopping doping, James Kirkup believes that authorities will never be successful, as doping is a never-ending circle:

The relevant authorities will deny there's a problem, then order an investigation that finds a few bad apples who are tossed out, but the whole hypocritical barrel will go rolling on. There's just too much at stake for any fundamental change. Meanwhile, drug-free athletes will be tainted by suspicion, even when there's not a shred of evidence they've broken the rules.

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Arguments for and against doping

Both the news clip and the text in your source material deal with the issue of doping. While the CNN video clip (Text I) explores a highly critical view of performance-enhancing drugs, the text published on the website of The Telegraph (Text II) is more open and supportive of doping. In what follows, we will set out some arguments for and against the use of performance-enhancing drugs in sports as stated in the two texts.

Here are some arguments against doping:

• The use of performance-enhancing drugs is unfair in sports (Text I);
• Performance-enhancing drugs are illegal because they are taken without medical prescription (Text I);

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Here are some arguments for doping:

• When doping is detected, there are no definitive measures taken against it, so authorities get involved in a never-ending circle (Text II);
• The mental and physical problems created by performance-enhancing drugs can disappear if such drugs are produced legally and properly regulated (Text II);
• Audiences who claim to be concerned for the athletes’ well-being are hypocritical, as they are happy to enjoy high-risk sports such as American football (Text II);

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