Performance Enhancing Drugs
In sports today, competition is the driving element, with each athlete wanting to be the best at what they do. The constant hours of practice, weight training, and spending time in the film room fills an athlete’s day. The athlete uses each activity to gain a competitive advantage over their opponents. However, for some athletes, these activities don’t provide enough advantages. Some athletes use PEDs, performance-enhancing drugs, to acquire their desired advantage. Anabolic steroids are used to build muscle mass faster than naturally. Athletes use ephedrine and amphetamines to increase endurance and boost their metabolism. Nutritional supplements are used to control weight and improve the athlete’s health. (Wilson & Potwarka, 2015). PEDs have become such a norm in today’s society that even non-athletes have begun using them. “Moreover, it is well documented that groups other than elite varsity athletes, are becoming exposed to doping agents, especially steroids.” (Wilson & Potwarka, 2015)
Ethical Dilemma
This particular situation involves a young athlete named Paul. Paul is currently a starter on his team due to his hard work in the weight room and on the field. Several of Paul’s teammates have started using a new PED showing fantastic results. Although the drug is a PED, it is currently legal and is not a banned substance because it is such a new product on the market. Paul’s coach knows of his players’ drug usage but has chosen to look the other way due to the team’s improved performance. His coach has recently informed Paul that he may lose his starting position to one of the players using the PED.
Paul’s dilemma is that he can stay a “clean” athlete and stay drug-free, but he may end up being replaced by one of the players on the new PED. To resolve the dilemma, Paul could do one of the following:
- Paul could go ahead and start using the new performance-enhancing
- Paul could keep his current position, stay drug-free, and continue being “clean.”
Core Beliefs
One of the core beliefs of Christianity is that the human body is a possession of God and also a temple of God. “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.” (1 Corinthians 6:20, KJV) Since the body is a temple of God, Paul might need to consider what he puts in his “temple.”
Another core belief is that Christians should always do what they know is right. “Better is the poor that walketh in his uprightness, than he that is perverse in his ways, though he be rich.” (Proverbs 28:6, KJV) It is better to be right in the eyes of God, so Paul should consider that when deciding if he wants to start using the PED or stay “clean.”
Resolution
The Christian thing for Paul to do is not to take the PEDs but remain a “clean” athlete. Paul may lose his starting position, but he will know that he is doing the right thing. By not putting foreign substances in his body, Paul keeps his “temple” clean and lives how God wants him to. “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16, KJV) It is important for Christians always to do the right thing and be an example of Christianity for others. By not taking the drug, Paul will continue to be an example of a “clean” athlete and a good Christian.
Evaluation
As a result of staying “clean,” Paul could lose his starting position. Paul could also be left behind by the players using the PEDs, allowing the players to gain a competitive advantage over him and other “clean” players.
The benefit of Paul staying “clean” could be that he knows he is doing the right thing, as Jesus would do. By living Christ-like, Paul sets an example for other Christian and non-Christian athletes. When athletes use PEDs, it not only affects them but it affects others as well. “Doping does not only affect the individual doping athlete; on the contrary, the use of PEDs can – and does – have consequences for numerous individuals, teams, organizations, sports, and even nations.” (Erickson, Backhouse, & Carless, 2016)
Comparison
This situation may affect another worldview differently than it does a Christian. We’ve all heard the famous saying, “If you are not cheating, then you are not trying hard enough.” Other worldviews adopt this particular stance in how they prepare and compete. They don’t care about how their actions affect others. They are only concerned with getting the desired results. However, Christians are supposed to care about their fellow man. They are to show love and treat others how they want. “As Larry Bowers, the Chief Science Officer at the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), points out, “cheating is not a victimless crime.” (Erickson, Backhouse, & Carless, 2016) As long as Christians realize this, they cannot, in good conscience, participate in cheating.
Conclusion
This dilemma is one that many athletes face every day in this world. To do as “everyone” else is doing or to make a choice and to do what they know is right. To be a Christian, we cannot just follow the crowd because the crowd doesn’t live in a Christ-like manner. We must strive to be a shining example for the rest of the world to see. Our lives and how we choose to live them are our testimony to the world of God’s grace. We don’t live in isolation, so our actions affect various people.
References
DiVincenzo, A. (Ed.). (2014). The beginning of wisdom: An introduction to Christian thought and life. Available from http://lc.gcumedia.com/cwv101/the-beginning-of-wisdom-an- introduction-to-Christian-thought-and-life/v1.1/
Erickson, K., Backhouse, S. H., & Carless, D. (2016). ‘The ripples are big’: Storying the impact of doping in the sport beyond the sanctioned athlete. Psychology Of Sport And Exercise, 2492- 99. doi:10.1016/j.psychsport.2016.01.010
Wilson, A. W., & Potwarka, L. R. (2015). Exploring Relationships Between Passion and Attitudes Toward Performance Enhancing Drugs in Canadian Collegiate Sport Contexts. Journal Of Intercollegiate Sport, 8(2), 227-246.
ORDER A PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPER HERE
We’ll write everything from scratch
Question 
Performance Enhancing Drugs
150 words on why performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) should NOT be allowed in competitive sports. Please provide examples and/or supporting documentation for your stance.