Many sports organizations around the world ban the use of performance enhancing drugs particularly anabolic steroids. This is due to the fact that steroids can help an athlete become a better player. Whatever their aims are, steroids can help them become stronger, bigger and faster. There are also some types that can improve hand and eye coordination of the athlete. In other words, anabolic steroids are not only used by athletes in the field of contact and physical sports but also in other sports like golf.

There are already several countries like the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom that puts anabolic steroids under the controlled substance category. This means it can only be used with valid prescription from a doctor and must be used only for medical purposes. Sports organizations have also implemented stringent policies against the use of anabolic steroids. In MLB for example, a first time violator will be given a 50-game suspension. This will affect the career of the athlete. In athletics, the minimum sanction is suspension from the sport for 2 years. There are already many athletes who suffered lifetime ban because of subsequent steroid use.

Even if there are strict regulations and policies, many professional athletes are still tempted to use performance enhancers. Their desire to excel in their chosen sports is the driving force why these athletes turn to steroids. They believe that these drugs are the only answer to their dreams. This is what happened to Tim Montgomery. His dream of becoming the fastest man in the world led him to the use of steroids. The first Olympian to be stripped of his medal, Ben Johnson, also faced the same fate.

Another reason why anabolic steroids are popular among athletes is the proliferation of many anabolic steroids sites. Most of them offers supplement products that promise better physique, improvement in endurance and stamina, stronger muscles and many more. Aside from the benefits they offer, the ease of purchasing these drugs online is a major factor. Instead of going to the pharmacy, purchasing from inline stores is as easy as 123. There are some online stores that can discretely deliver orders thus encouraging more athletes to purchase steroids online.

These online stores act as the immediate source of steroids. But there are some setbacks in relying too much on these online sites. First, you do not know if they are complying with the standards in manufacturing those drugs. There are already countless cases where anabolic steroids are manufactured at home laboratories and then sold online. The potency of each drug or supplement is not reliable anymore. The buying public could also be a victim of fly-by-night websites wherein there is no available after sales support, no clear returns policy and the worst is no physical store or office. If you have problems with the product, there’s nobody who can be held liable.

Again, professional athletes will forever live with the temptation of using anabolic steroids as long as there will be steroid sites offering products to gain competitive advantage and give them the assurance that they will win their game.

Illegal manufacturing and distribution of anabolic steroid is one of the perennial problems of the federal authorities as well as local enforcement agencies. Aside from the unauthorized production of these drugs, it is also unsafe for the consuming public. Since anabolic steroids are controlled substances, manufacturing of these drugs are only given to licensed pharmaceutical companies. If there are some cases where supplement products of some pharma companies are tainted with steroids ingredients or steroid-like substances, it is more dangerous to patronize products from illegal sources. It is common for these illegal manufacturers to undeclare some harmful ingredients or increase the dosages to make it more potent.

In Ohio, the DEA and local enforcement agencies joined together to end a large scale steroid manufacturing and distribution center in the Perrysburg area. It is so far the largest seizure by the authorities where the amount of anabolic steroids seized from the suspect could reach up to $1 million. After a few months of investigation, Greg Kreuz, 39 of Perrysburg was arrested for illegal manufacturing of anabolic steroids and distribution of these drugs in the area. “We’ve been working on it for quite a few months, and the investigation led to enough probable cause to get a search warrant and an arrest warrant,” said Perrysburg Deputy Police Chief Mike Gilmore.

Kreuz is currently held in Wood County jail and his bond is set at $250,000. The initial charges against Kreuz include two counts of possession of drugs and one count of manufacturing drugs. The search at his home steroid laboratory revealed large volume of steroids. “This was primarily a distributor, but the charges haven’t come to that yet,” said Police Chief Gilmore. “We haven’t gotten to his computer yet. We haven’t gotten to his customers,” he added. Authorities believe that the distribution of steroids could be beyond the Perrysburg area. Additional charges may be filed once the investigators gather more information from the suspect and the computer seized from him could unlock the extent of operation of Kreuz.

The authorities did not reveal the type of steroids seized from the suspect. The common customers of these drugs are bodybuilders and professional athletes. Though this helps in the development of muscles and strength, abuse of anabolic steroids could lead to serious health problems such as heart diseases, liver damage, gynecomastia, depression and other complications.

With the amount of anabolic steroids confiscated by the authorities, Kreuz may not be alone in this steroid operation. Others may be involved in the illegal operation which could be statewide or international in scope. According to a drug counselor, the home based operation of steroid production is not uncommon. Although it is a controlled substance, it can be purchased just like a pack of gum. It can be ordered through the internet or by phone and have it delivered to your home.

Kreuz’ neighbors were surprised of his alleged involvement in illegal manufacture of anabolic steroids at his home. Carl Ryan of Toledo Blade interviewed some of Kreuz’ neighbors and most of them said that they did not noticed any unusual activities at the suspect’s home. Kreuz is a nice guy and a very quiet man. A resident in the area who once cleaned Kreuz’ house never saw any pill, capsules or injectables which are typical form of steroids.

When the news came out that former baseball slugger Jose Canseco will be fighting a 60-year old in a celebrity boxing match, many sports writers criticized him for taking the challenge. Gary Hogan, a retired baseball coach from the University of Arkansas and the assistant athletic director of Little Rock, fought Canseco in a 4 rounder boxing match. It was indeed a good promotional stunt for the organizers since they were able to get the attention of the public and the fans as well. The proceeds of the exhibition match will benefit Ray Rodgers’ boxing gym and the GED program in Little Rock.

The “Rock ‘em Sock ‘em Rumble by the River” boxing match was held at the Dickey-Stephens Park before the Arkansas Travelers-Midland Rockhounds Double-A baseball game. Canseco lost to Hogan for a 39-37 score card. There were several comments against Canseco in many online discussions for losing against a 60-year old. Some said that it is time for Canseco to leave the world of sports and leave behind the fame that he had experienced before. The effects of his steroid use could be the reason why he was not able to at least dominate the fight.

It can be recalled that the first celebrity fight of Canseco against the former NFL player Vai Sikahema in 2008 was a knockdown. Sikahema knocked him out in 97 seconds. His second fight was a draw. Canseco was trying to rebuild his career in boxing and MMA but he finds it difficult to get good match ups and bigger events.

But for those people who watch the game, they believe that Canseco did not exert too much effort in winning the celebrity boxing match since it is only an exhibition game. According to Steve Cofield of Yahoo Sports, it looks like the snitch that sports fans love to hate showed a little heart. “Frankly, it didn’t look like Canseco, 46, was really trying,” he said.

However, it was different thing for Hogan. He believes that Canseco already lost his stamina and strength in the succeeding rounds. “He did [throw his heavy artillery at me],” Hogan said during the post fight interview by the media. “I took some shots but the bottom line is, I’m used to taking shots. I felt good in there. I wasn’t tired, my conditioning was unbelievable. I thought he got tired there in the third and fourth rounds,” Hogan added.

On the other hand, Canseco was not really aiming to win the fight. Anyway, he was paid for participating in that boxing event. “It’s an exhibition. I had a great time. I’ve gotta a lot of respect for Gary. Just coming out here and fighting a guy 15 years his junior, he’s got some [guts],” Canseco said in an interview.

One thing that Canseco should realize in competing in celebrity matches is it may not help his bid to get into the real world of boxing and mixed martial arts. He needs to fight in title matches to be able to improve his rankings. Right now, Canseco is aiming for a cage fight against Herschel Walker. But the Strikeforce seems not interested in including them in one of the major events in MMA.

Meanwhile, Ken Shamrock apologized to fans for blaming them why professional athletes like him are into steroids. The former Hall of Famer clarified his statement saying it is really up to the athletes if they take steroids or not. “I’m sorry if that’s the way it came off to point fingers at fans because that’s not what I was doing. I’m not saying that it’s not the athlete’s responsibility at all, no way. But what I’m saying is when something like that comes out and then you have people going, ‘oh my God, I can’t believe he was doing that!’ … that to me is wrong because to me most likely — and I’m not saying in all cases — but most likely people know what’s going on,” he told Zach Arnold of The Fight Nerd.

He also denied that he was in favor of legalizing anabolic steroids. He was quoted in previous interview that he believes steroids should be made legal. “No, that was taken out of context. I do not, absolutely do not believe that steroids should be legal,” Shamrock said. “My intention on that whole conversation was I thought that steroids should be controlled,” he added.

Shamrock, who already served his suspension due to a positive test for anabolic steroid, is scheduled to fight against Pedro Rizzo at Impact FC card in Sydney, Australia on July 17.

Two more names of football players from the University of Waterloo Warriors were released to the public by the Canadian Center for Ethics and Sports. Out of the 62 players tested by the regulatory body, 9 players failed because of a positive steroid test, failure to follow the protocols and some of them admitted to taking anabolic steroids even before the test is conducted. In the first press release, two players were named by CCES because they already signed a waiver and accepted the consequences of their positive urine tests. Linebacker Joe Surgenor admitted that he took Winstrol while linebacker Jordon Meredith tested positive for a banned substance Tamoxifen. It is a drug commonly used after a steroid cycle to lessen the effects of steroids. Both were given 2 year suspensions.

On Friday, the CCES identified two more names from the football team. They were linebackers Matt Peto and Eric Polini. Their names were released to the public because they already decided not to contest the results of the test. According to online sources, 3rd year linebacker Matt Peto admitted to the anti-doping authorities that he used steroids even before the players were notified of the team-wide testing on March 31. This is the reason why he was only given a 1-year suspension. First year linebacker Eric Polini was given a 2-year suspension because his admission was only made when the testing is being carried out.

This steroid controversy in Canadian football started when UW receiver Nathan Zettler was arrested for trafficking anabolic steroids and other criminal charges. As the investigation unfolds, another team member was arrested. Linebacker Brandon Krukowski was also charged with possession and trafficking of anabolic steroids.

The CCES collected a total of 61 urine samples and 20 blood samples. CCES officials told the media that one of the results of their blood testing showed an adverse finding. It came from the 9 players who failed the urine testing. The agency did not revealed the type of drug found in the blood sample but many are speculating that it could be human growth hormone or the blood boosting drug EPO. These drugs are only detected in blood testing.

According to CCES President Paul Melia the results from the testing of the University of Waterloo football team are significant, and neither the CCES nor the CIS can afford to be complacent in their wake. “When athletes cheat by doping, they are not only endangering their own health, but their actions, unfortunately, cast a shadow of doubt and cynicism over the achievements of others,” Melia added.

The University of Waterloo released a statement that they will continue the program after the completion of internal investigation. This is in response to the clamor of other players to lift the suspension for the entire football team. Many players are saying that the decision of the University is unfair to those who followed the rules. The university’s director of communications, Martin van Nierop said that the program will continue and all the full-time coaches will return to work. The coaches can start the training with the remaining football players this fall.

The sport that ended his career is still corrupt. This is according to former Olympian Ben Johnson when he told the BBC during an interview. It was already more than 2 decades after the first controversial doping case in athletics happened but the former word title holder insist that there was no improvement in the sports. Ben Johnson was stripped off his 100m gold medal after he was tested positive for steroid stanozolol in Seoul Olympics.

It was the hardest thing to accept for Johnson because he believes that he was singled out in that competition. He was not the only one taking performance enhancing drugs. “I don’t watch track and field that much because it’s all corrupted. I was the scapegoat,” he told BBC. His 9.83 secs was removed from the record and the anti-doping authorities imposed a 4 year ban on him. “I was not protected and did not get the same treatment as everyone else,” said Johnson.

Johnson said that everybody is doing it. If he will not use steroids, he will not be able to get a fair chance of winning. “I look back and I made some mistakes. I was using steroids, but everyone was in the same level playing field. The person who is clean in this business is the person who doesn’t make it,” said Johnson. His trainer, who died recently also share the same sentiment. During an inquiry initiated by the Canadian government, trainer and coach Charlie Francis said that he gave steroids to his athletes to make the competition a level playing field. Coach Francis was also banned in athletics but his claims supported the allegation of Ben Johnson.

In May, Johnson said in an interview that he was a victim of sabotage. That there were some people who intentionally destroyed his reputation and career. He even mentioned that someone was helping and providing him detailed information about the incident in Seoul. Johnson reiterated that statement in his latest interview. “I was the victim of sabotage. Sure I took steroids but just to train, not to run fast. It doesn’t enable me to run faster,” said the former Olympian.

The Jamaican born athlete believes that the book will help clear his name. “I enjoy my life whichever way it comes, it doesn’t matter. My name will be cleared once this book comes out. If you say I’m the biggest cheat, who do you think you are? You can’t judge me. You are not the person to judge me,” said Jonhson. This will add to the increasing number of steroid related books published by many professional athletes involved in the use of anabolic steroids and other performance enhancing drugs. Though most of them are intended to protect their names but some became an important source of information just like the steroid books of Jose Canseco which detailed the rampant use of steroids in major league baseball.

Johnson added that the book will be a good one. “This book will set my soul free. There is no bad news in this book. It’s a good book.” The book entitled “Seoul to Soul” is expected to be released in September.

Johnson was not alone in his dilemma of being tagged as a steroid cheat. Actually there is a long list of professional track and field athletes who also faced the same consequences. Olympian Tim Montgomery, Marion Jones, Justin Gatlin, Dwain Chambers, Crystal Cox and many others were sanctioned for using steroids and their glorious career ended in pain.

A football midfielder from WAFL is facing a two year ban for testing positive for steroid nandrolone. The Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority or ASADA informed the East Perth officials about the results of the test conducted on the A and B sample of the player. East Perth Royals midfielder Dean Cadwallader expressed his remorse during a press conference held recently. The team officials tried to hide the results from other players but they have no other option but to go public because Cadwallader was not seen playing for two weeks now.

East Perth coach Tony Micale, who joined him in the press conference, said that other players are already wondering about the status of Cadwallader. “Obviously Dean is a very popular player at the club and a quality player and when he was missing the last two weeks, players were wondering about his whereabouts,” said Micale. The coach also told the media that he was disappointed on what happened to his ward especially that many AFL teams are already eyeing Cadwallader to be part of their team. “I think most of you would know that Dean has been in the sights of most AFL clubs and that he would almost certainly have been drafted later this year. This is now a real test of his character. I think he has the ability and the attitude to come back,” Micale added.

The Royals coach clarified that even if Cadwallader played an important role in the team, they will not tolerate his wrongdoings. “As Dean acknowledged, he’s made a big mistake and he’s going to pay a heavy price for it,” he said. “I just want to say, on behalf of the Club and his teammates, that we can’t condone what he’s done, but we can and will support him in his efforts to come back from this obvious setback to his dream of playing AFL,” Micale said.

Below is an excerpt of Cadwallader’s statement posted on the East Perth Football Club website.

“I would like to acknowledge my actions and express my regret for the disappointment I’ve caused to a lot of people. I’d like to apologise to my family, my teammates, the East Perth Football Club and its staff, its members and our supporters. There is no excuse. I’ve made a huge mistake and I’m going to pay the price for that mistake. I only hope that I can come back to the game in the future and make a positive contribution. I’d like to thank the club and my family for their support and once again apologise for the hurt that I have caused them.”

The final decision will come out on July 14. For the meantime, Cadwallader has the opportunity to contest the result or give his explanation on why he was tested positive for steroid at the Anti-Doping Rule Violation Panel. But the anti-doping authority will certainly give the 2 year ban. The only thing that Cadwallader can hope for is not to ban him from all levels of the sport.

His coach believes that Cadwallader made an error of judgment in taking steroids. “Dean didn’t need to do it, in my opinion. Dean had the natural talent to achieve the highest level without using drugs,” said Micale. “I’m absolutely shocked. It’s taken the club by complete surprise and I’m really, really disappointed for Dean because Dean’s a quality person and he’s just made an error of judgement on this occasion,” the coach added.

The case of Cadwallader will again make a negative impact not just on the Royals and WAFL but on the entire sports in general. There are already cases where some of the AFL players were involved in taking steroids. The Royals coach said that he has no knowledge if there are other players involved in the use of anabolic steroids or other performance enhancing drugs. He also declined to comment when asked about Cadwallader’s steroid regimen.

Dean Cadwallader is only 19 years old but his career in football may end too soon because of anabolic steroids. Nandrolone is a popular steroid known to help athletes build muscles. Another name for this steroid is Deca-durabolin. According to online sources, Cadwallader tested positive in late May and the result of his B sample was made known this week.