Intensive Drug Testing at the Winter Olympics in Vancouver February 2
Next month, the Winter Olympics will be held in Vancouver, British Columbia. While the arrival of world-class athletes is a given, there will be another group of people that will be arriving with them: drug testers.
The presence of performance-enhancing drugs and other banned substances in the various sports disciplines has been the subject of many scandals. With the onset of these incidents, the need for drug testing has become part and parcel of any sports event, including the Olympics, in an attempt to ensure fair play for all athletes concerned.
Twenty American testers have been selected by the U.S. Anti-doping Agency to help their Canadian counterparts conduct testing for athletes to detect use of performance-enhancing drugs and other banned substances. Among these testers are two Western New York residents – registered nurse Dan Rozanski and Dr. Monica Spaulding.
While this is Dan Rozanski’s first time to serve at the Olympics, three-time veteran Dr. Spaulding, who is about to serve in her fourth Olympics as a drug tester, said that this Olympics will feature “perhaps the most intensive testing ever done,” according to a feature on The Buffalo News.
In terms of drug testing per se, though, both Rozanski and Dr. Spaulding have extensive experience, having been involved in the coordination of drug testing for amateur, collegiate and professional athletes. Dr. Spaulding has been involved in drug testing since 1993 and previously worked for the U.S. Olympic Committee both as drug tester and as the trainer for drug testers. Rozanski, on the other hand, has 12 years of experience and works for a company that is involved in testing for MLB, NFL and NHL teams.
Tags: plympics drug testing, sports drug tests, winter olympics, winter olympics drug testing