Following the gene map

Following the gene map(2002, Jan 29) American Statesman, by J. Maher

Lee Sweeney's work progresses to canine experiments to better understand how IGF-1 is related to muscle growth. Sweeney is not really interested in sport, though acknowledges that his work could offer ways for athletes to 'cheat' sporting structures. Larry Bowers from USADA also notes that the situation in world sport is that it could do nothing to prevent the effective bypassing of testing procedures, if athletes were able to use genetic modification right now. Johann Olav Koss, triple Olympic Gold medalist and IOC medical commission member also states that he thinks gene doping has already started.

It is interesting to note how this article refers back to the Ben Johnson example, as if he is representative of an entirely different era of sport doping. Yet, with the designer steroid THG making its way into the anti-doping agenda, it would appear that genetics is but one example of further challenges for anti-doping policy makers.

This article also notes that the origin of reseacrh that could be applied to sport, begins as research for medically therapeutic ends.

Genetically engineering athletes before birth is also presented as a 'scary' prospect, though the article de-contextualises such choices entirely. Effectively, we are asked to imagine Frankenstein's monster, rather than to imagine a genetically different human being.