Aspiring sportspeople who dream of representing Barbados on the highest international stage have been urged to avoid the lure of enhancements.
The advice has come from Dr Adrian Lorde, the most senior sports medicine physician in Barbados.
He delivered the cold truth that there are major health risks, loss of career and other serious penalties for deviants and athletes who run afoul of the rules and regulations which govern sporting events and protect their integrity. Addressing the Barbados Cricket Association’s (BCA) annual awards ceremony at the Hilton Barbados Resort on Saturday night, he said, “Athletes risk their health, their integrity and their legacy for short-term gain. Clean sport matters.
Among the speciallyinvited guests and dignitaries was The Most Honourable Jeffrey Bostic, President of Barbados, who is patron of the BCA. Cricket icons Sir Gordon Greenidge and The Most Honourable Desmond Haynes, as well as Gregory Nicholls, Minister of Home Affairs and Information and a former BCA vicepresident, were among those in the audience.
Financial incentives
“Recently, many of you would have heard my views on the Enhanced Games – an initiative where athletes are permitted to use performance-enhancing substances without testing. Significant financial incentives are offered, but we must ask: at what cost?” Lorde asked.
“We cannot allow money to tempt us into compromising our values. Such actions send the wrong message to the sporting world, and to the next generation . . . . Clean sport matters. I say especially to our young cricketer players, to our coaches, support staff, parents and officials: Play fair. Do not cheat. There are no true shortcuts to success . . . . Fair play matters.”
According to the website of the Enhanced Games,
organisers have robustly promoted the event as “a global annual competition that celebrates human potential through safe, transparent enhancement, offering fair play, record pay and unmatched athlete care”.
‘Upper limits’
They have invited athletes to compete while legally using performance-enhancing drugs and methods. It will be staged in Las Vegas, United States.
It aims to challenge traditional, drug-free sports by allowing medically-supervised enhancement to showcase the “upper limits” of human potential, offering significant prize money, including US$1 million for world records.
Lorde said personal and national pride in representing one’s country should be the driving forces for sportspeople.
“For every sportsperson, pride is the starting point and our motto begins with pride – Pride And Industry. It is the pride you feel when you wear your national colours, represent your school, club or step onto the cricket field. It is the pride in the countless early mornings, late evenings, the gruelling training sessions and the sacrifices made when no one is watching. Pride is what keeps you going when the body is tired and weary, and the mind begins to doubt,” he said.
“But pride in sport carries responsibility. It demands that you compete with integrity, respect your opponents and honour the rules. Because true pride is not just about winning, or winning at all costs, it is about how you compete and how you play matters. That pride must then be reflected in performance.”
The long-standing director of the Barbados Olympic Association and a founding president of the Barbados Sports Medicine Association, has attended several global events, including the Olympic Games in the official capacity as team doctor. He urged the nation to recognise the place which cricket holds.
Role models
“Despite what is being said, cricket is still king in Barbados, and when Barbados’ cricket is strong, West Indies cricket is strong,” he said.
“To all of you here tonight: you are more than just players. You are role models. Young people are watching you, learning from you and aspiring to be like you, like you aspired to be like Sir Garfield Sobers, The Most Honourable Joel Garner, Sir Gordon Greenidge, The Most Honourable Desmond Haynes, or more recently, Jason Holder or Shai Hope. The way you train, the way you play and the way you conduct yourselves on and off the field matters.” (PS)
