The BALCO founder claimed he already learned from his mistakes and served jail time as punishment for his role in professional sports doping. But Victor Conte is still facing a hard time getting out from the steroid stigma.

The BALCO was dismantled years ago but his name is still being associated to steroids especially that he is now managing a nutrition company providing elite athletes with supplements. The SNAC or Scientific Nutrition for Advanced Conditioning has in its long lists of clients professional athletes from boxing, track and field and baseball.

Berto Defending His Link to Conte

Andre Berto, who just won his comeback fight against Slovenian Jan Zaveck, defended his decision in getting the services of Victor Conte. In a pre-fight interview, Berto told the media that Conte was able to help him a lot during the training. “I’ve had a tremendous training camp. We switched things up a bit and went to California for this camp and I have been working Victor Conte. He’s really been helping me with my nutrition and has taught me the importance of having rest days,” said Berto.

The former WBC Welterweight champion claimed that they already dumped the old school training after they met Conte and the results are good.

But when asked by a sports writer about steroids, Berto is quick to defend Conte. “He’s had a rough past but I know everything he’s done (with me) is legal.” Berto also said that nobody’s putting an injection on him. “I know that what I’m doing is legit.”

Berto’s claim of the IBF welterweight crown from Zaveck will help him regain his position in the welterweight division and hope for a fight with Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao. But before he can do that he must take some more fights and probably a rematch with Victor Ortiz.

Andre Ward Urge to Take Steroid Test

Meanwhile, Andre Ward is also on the hot seat. His opponent, Carl Froch, wants him to undergo a stringent drug testing because of his ties with Victor Conte. The Daily Star reported that Froch will ask his promoter if a pre-fight drug test or blood test is possible before they clash on October 29 at Atlantic City. They will be brawling for the WBC super-middleweight title.

“There have been stories about American boxers taking steroids, so you do wonder if people are taking things to give them the edge,” Froch told the Daily Star. “I will be raising the question with my promoter Eddie Hearn and he will probably do something about it, whether it’s a pre-fight drug test or blood test,” he added.

On the other hand, Ward told the media that he already severed his ties with Conte. However, Conte played a major role in his win on Mikkel Kessler in the Super Six tournament in 2009. Ward also defended Conte. “Victor’s very knowledgeable. I would talk to him about ­supplements, he’s on the right track,” Ward said.

Other Boxers Working with Conte

Other boxers who are under Conte’s nutrition program were not spared from critics. Nonito Donaire also defended his decision to work with Conte and the “Filipino Flash” believes Conte is not giving him any type of steroids. Zab Judah is also working with Conte.

None of these boxers have failed any steroid test but their critics will never stop associating them to steroids use. And that’s because of Victor Conte.

Many are not aware that steroid abuse is not only happening in bodybuilding and professional sports. According to an anti-steroid advocate, there are at least half a million kids who are buying steroids. Last year’s data also showed that at least 300,000 young teens admitted to taking performance enhancing drugs. An increasing number of girls who are experimenting with steroids are also recorded. If this is not curtailed, it will lead to serious health conditions that experts claim will result to long term physical and mental side effects.

Football Hall of Famer Taking the Lead

These alarming statistics were shared by former football legend and Hall of Famer Dick Butkus during an interview with the Scout.com. Butkus is leading the campaign against steroid use especially in younger generation. He started the “I Play Clean” campaign 5 years ago when he learned that there is a high number of young kids involved in steroids.

Butkus established the “I Play Clean” program together with his son. “My son Matt and I started IPlayClean about four or five years ago. That was due to certain circumstances I’d heard about with kids taking steroids. We talked to Don Hooton, who committed to us, about his son’s problem with steroids,” he told the Scout.

Kids Take Steroids without Supervision

The pro bowler is worried on the future of these kids. Most of them (at least 82%) admitted that they used steroids without supervision and have no knowledge on the dangers of taking steroids. He believes that though proper education, these kids will be spared from the negative side effects of steroids.

He cited as an example the health conditions of most bodybuilders and power lifters who are heavy steroid users. Health experts found out that the calcium levels and heart rate of these users is equivalent to 30 years older than their actual age. Kids are more prone to these side effects. “Taking steroids is detrimental to your health, especially during your developmental years,” he added.

The Battle against Teen Steroid Use not Easy

Butkus admitted that the fight against teen steroid use is not an easy battle. Peer pressure and the desire to excel in their chosen sports are the primary obstacles in keeping these kids away from performance enhancing drugs. With the help of some partners, the “I Play Clean” program was able to distribute at least 10,000 educational kits to high school students every year. This is to increase the awareness of the students about anabolic steroids.

Other Programs to Strengthen Campaign

Aside from educational programs, Butkus also want to spread the play clean campaign through the Butkus Awards. They are now planning to include high schools in their annual award for best football player. They also have a new project called the “Butkus High School Hits Of The Week,” where high school athletes are encourage to send their best hits. Fans will vote for the best entry every week and a year end award for top hitters.

“It’s a basement deal. We’re trying to get more people involved, not only for kids but for parents and coaches. We have the information about steroids in those educational kits, and the signs of abuse,” said Butkus.

Butkus also commended the Little League for promoting clean and fair play. In the recently concluded Little League World Series, athletes wore a patch saying “I won’t cheat.” “You hit the nail right on the head. What we’re hoping is we get enough of these kids that say, ‘It’s not cool to take that junk. Let’s play fair.’ It’s a character issue,” Butkus said.

Judge Walton can’t legally throw out the indictment thus a retrial was ruled Friday. The defense was dismayed by the decision of Judge Reggie Walton to allow the prosecution to retry Roger Clemens for steroid perjury charges. Clemens’ lead lawyer told the media that they will decide within days whether to appeal the ruling.

Defense: Mistrial Provoked

The defense asked Judge Walton to declare a mistrial when the prosecution presented evidences that were previously barred by the judge. The trial in July ended abruptly due to the presentation of a video containing the deposition of Laura Pettitte, wife of another key witness Andy Pettitte. The judge ruled the testimony of Laura is inadmissible but the prosecution still showed the video on the second day of trial.

The defense already requested for the total dismissal of the indictments but the prosecution asked for a retrial and defended their error. Clemens’ lawyers argued that the government deliberately committed the error so that a mistrial is declared.

At the hearing Friday, the defense reiterated their position. “No doubt this was a calculated effort to make an end run around this court’s ruling,” said Michael Attanasio, Clemens lawyer. He said that the government employed a win-at-all-cost mentality. “This was a tactical desire to get the upper hand and it is beneath the dignity of the U.S. Attorney’s Office.”

Retrial Not Fair

Attanasio added that a retrial is not fair to their client. “We cannot let that go with a handshake. It’s too important to our client. They have walked over him in an effort to start over and it’s not right,” he said.

Judge: Mistrial not Provoked

Judge Walton fumed when the prosecution erred in the July trial. However, his latest decision favored the government. In his ruling, the judge said that he can’t find factual basis to conclude that the government deliberately committed the mistake as claimed by the defense. “I would hate to believe they just blatantly disregarded rulings that I made, but it’s hard for me to reach any other conclusion,” said Judge Walton.

He also added that the error occurred too early in proceedings so it’s hard for him to conclude prosecutors were concerned about the jury or course of the trial.

Judge Walton also said that the double jeopardy rule is not applicable in Clemens’ case. He set a new trial on April 17.

Retrial: Back to Square One

Clemens’ retrial on the six count indictment will just prolong his agony. The pitcher continuously denied that he lied about his steroid use. But the key witnesses of the prosecution claims that Clemens used performance enhancing drugs during his career. Andy Pettitte claimed that his buddy confided to him about taking HGH injections while his former trainer, Brian McNamee, claimed that he personally injected Clemens with human growth hormone on several occasions.

The defense team will again convince the jury that Clemens is innocent and should not be convicted for obstruction of Congress, making false statements and perjury.

Up to now, the football league and the player’s association can’t agree on how the HGH test will be implemented. A meeting with the WADA was not fruitful since it just created more questions than answers. The NFLPA commented that they were not satisfied about WADA’s testing methods for human growth hormone. On the other hand, the NFL believes that WADA knows their job and they can handle the HGH testing program of the league.

Union Taking a Hard Stance on HGH

The HGH test negotiation should be between the NFL and the player’s association. However, the World Anti-Doping Agency is now being dragged into their scuffle. In the meeting last August, WADA told the media that the reliability of the test is acceptable to the league and the player’s association. But the union lambasted WADA for speaking in behalf of the NFLPA. “He should not be so arrogant and presumptuous to speak on our behalf or on the behalf of anybody from our team,” NFLPA spokesman George Atallah told the NY Times.

The League Defended the Program

The league defended the role of WADA in the new anti-doping program. “This is not WADA’s program. It is our program,” said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. He explained that the league just wanted to have a level playing field and is concerned with the health and safety of the players.

“We have always embraced the best available testing technology and been leaders in the fight against performance-enhancing drugs that distort the competition on the field and jeopardize the health and safety of athletes. We have the opportunity to do something meaningful not only for our players but for all athletes at all levels of play,” Aiello said.

Weekly Conference Canceled by NFLPA

With just a few weeks before the start of the new season, many are speculating that the HGH testing program will not be implemented. Since the player’s association is creating so many issues and demands, more time will be required by both parties to iron out their differences.

And for the NFLPA, it seems that the HGH testing is not on their priority or they are actually not interested in putting it in place. The scheduled weekly conference call was canceled Wednesday. One of the agenda that they are supposed to discuss is the HGH testing. The AP reported that most of the NFLPA executive committee were traveling or preparing for their final preseason game. The union also said that they did not receive from WADA additional information on the reliability and safety of the human growth hormone testing.

Praises Futile

When the league and the player’s association announced that they will include HGH into the current anti-doping policy, many were pleased. They received commendations from several lawmakers like Rep. Mary Bono Mack of California. “The new NFL drug policy will serve as an important example to those young people who seek to emulate their gridiron heroes and send an important message about playing and competing in a fair and clean manner,” Mack told ESPN. But these praises will become futile if both parties fail to compromise.

The league wants the HGH test but the union wants reliable testing. If the union stick to their belief that the current HGH testing method is still unreliable (though HGH testing has been in use in the Olympics since 2004), then it will be definite that the players will play this season without the blood test. The league will use the old steroid policy

Some sources said that the NFLPA is just buying more time so that their players could prepare for the HGH blood test. In other words, their reluctance to allow an independent testing agency such as the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is only used as a means to delay the implementation of the human growth hormone testing in the football league. WADA has been conducting HGH tests since 2004 but only a few pro athletes were caught using the drug.

WADA Not Transparent with the Testing

In the meeting with WADA’s officials and scientist, the NFLPA told the media that they were not satisfied with the information presented to them. Top officials of the NFL and the players union attended the meeting last month. An NFLPA official was quoted saying that the WADA was not transparent with regards to the details of their HGH testing. But WADA’s director hinted that the concern of NFLPA is more on the HGH negotiation and not on the test itself.

Michael O’Keeffe of the Daily News recently wrote an article discussing why the player’s association is still hesitant to accept human growth hormone testing. The NFL and the player’s association had agreed in principle the inclusion of HGH test to the current anti-doping policies of the league. However, both parties must iron out the details of the implementing guidelines before the new program can be adopted.

Anti-Doping Scientist Sided with Player’s Union

O’Keeffe interviewed the country’s renowned anti-doping expert Don Catlin. The scientist and founder of the first anti-doping lab in the country help shed some light on this issue. He explained why the NFLPA is still reluctant in partnering with WADA. Catlin echoed the sentiment of the player’s union when they said the WADA is not transparent with how they conduct HGH testing. “I’d like to look at the data, but WADA doesn’t disclose its information so an independent scientist can review it,” Catlin told O’Keeffee.

The founder of the UCLA Olympic Analytical Laboratory and chief executive officer of Anti-Doping Research based in Los Angeles claimed that the World Anti-Doping Agency does not share information to other anti-doping researchers. Information regarding the number of false positives and false negatives are very significant according to Catlin. It will serve as a basis in determining whether the methods used in HGH test is accurate or not.

HGH False Positive is a Primary Concern

Catlin said that every test will have false positives but the important question is the frequency and number of athletes with false positive results. “We understand that people are sometimes put in jail or even put to death because of mistakes. One in 10,000 - is that acceptable? It’s not if you are that one person, but it’s acceptable to most of us. But if it is one in 10, then you know we are not there yet,” the anti-doping expert said. “When you put the information out there for other people to review, that’s when it gets serious.”

Player’s Apprehension

Though players want a level playing field, they are still concerned on the validity of the current testing methods for HGH. The body is also producing its own HGH so some are worried if the current test can distinguish the synthetic from the natural HGH.

The HGH drug can only be detected within 24 to 48 hours. Critics still argue if it will be an effective tool in curtailing the abuse of performance enhancing drug in football. But for Catlin, what is more important is the reliability of the test. “I’d like a test with at least a week of retrospectivity, but that’s OK as long as it is not giving a high number of false positives,” he said.

Barry Bonds will get a relief from his steroid case while Roger Clemens must continue fighting for his innocence. US Prosecutors decided not to pursue the retrial of the outstanding steroid perjury charges against Barry Bonds. On the other hand, the government wants to continue the prosecution of Roger Clemens.

Retrial of Steroid Perjury Charges Dropped

Prosecutors filed Wednesday their decision to drop the 3 perjury charges which were declared as mistrial when the jury failed to reach a verdict last April. The notice filed by U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag in federal court states that the charges for making false statements to a grand jury has been dismissed. The perjury charge was centered on Bonds’ alleged lying about his steroids use and HGH injection. He also denied that Greg Anderson injected him with performance enhancing drugs.

Legal experts said that the decision of the prosecution will benefit both parties. The government’s resources will not be wasted anymore since many believes that the government is spending millions of dollars for a case that must not be brought in court. Barry Bonds’ case lasted for 8-years and the prosecution only get 1 conviction. Judge Susan Illston upheld the obstruction of justice conviction on Bonds. The sentencing is scheduled on December 16.

Prosecutors Realized its Enough

Bonds’ legal team declined to comment on the move of the prosecution. However, people who were previously involved in the case told the media that the government already realized that they must concede. “This whole steroid thing is way overblown,” Michael Rains told the Mercury News. Rains is a former lawyer of Bonds in the BALCO case. “They spent millions of dollars pursuing Barry to the exclusion of many other athletes. It’s time to let it go,” he said.

BALCO founder Victor Conte, who already served jail term for his distribution of designer steroids to professional athletes, said that prosecuting Bonds for perjury was a huge waste of taxpayer’s money. “Many of the athletes involved with BALCO committed perjury when they testified before the grand jury. Barry simply had the biggest name and brought the most headlines to the prosecutors,” he added.

Roger Clemens Facing a Tough Battle

The lawyers of Roger Clemens also asked the court to drop the perjury charges against the “Rocket.” Judge Reggie Walton declared an early mistrial when prosecutors presented evidences that were barred in the pre-trial hearing. In their filing, the defense lambasted the prosecutors for committing an egregious error and the court should not allow them to ask for a retrial of the case. The defense also claimed that the use of barred evidences is intentional because the prosecutors have a weak case against Clemens.

Prosecutors Not Giving Up

But prosecutors will not give up easily on this case. In their response to the motion, the prosecutors admitted that they committed a mistake but they argued it must not be considered as misconduct. They also contend that the error was not a deliberate move on their part.

They have significant evidences and testimonies that will prove Clemens really lied under oath. If the trial proceeded, the prosecutors could have presented DNA evidence from the syringes used by McNamee. These syringes were allegedly used in injecting Clemens with human growth hormone. The case is strong, the prosecutors claimed.

Judge Walton scheduled a September 2 hearing. This will determine if Clemens will face a retrial or the double jeopardy rule will prevail.