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Swedish Athletes Back GPS Implants to Combat Drug Use

Posted by samzenpus on from the i-can't-be-trusted-with-my-freedoms-please-take-them dept.

paulraps writes "Swedish athletes Carolina Klüft and Stefan Holm have proposed a radical technological measure to stop top level competitors from taking performance-enhancing drugs. Klüft and Holm, reigning Olympic champions in the heptathlon and high-jump events, argue that competitors at the highest level should either have computer chips implanted into their skin or GPS transmitters attached to their training bags so that the authorities can keep tabs on them at all times."

9 of 299 comments (clear)

  1. WTF? by KCStein · · Score: 1, Interesting

    How would having a position tracking device prevent athletes from doping?

    --
    Sharper than the edge of Ockham's Razor.
    1. Re:WTF? by SerpentMage · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Around 1988, I was in university and my roommate said, "you know they should just let everyone use and call it a day." I looked at him and replied, "huh? this is bad stuff and it should be stopped."

      He replied, "you can't stop it, and will not be able to. You are constantly going to play cat and mouse, and the only ones that are going to be hurt are the honest brokers. So level the playing field and let them all take it." This was when one of the first scandals broke out.

      I keep thinking about that comment (he went on to become an actuarial) and keep thinking that they now regulate athletes to the point where any slight deviation (even natural) is considered taking drugs.

      Think about what is going to happen once DNA modifications come into play. What then?

      I am not happy about this situation and would rather see a clean game, but it sort of seems futile. Look at Tour D'France? They have tried, tried, and tried yet again. What happens? Oh another scandal.

      --

      "You can't make a race horse of a pig"
      "No," said Samuel, "but you can make very fast pig"
  2. Why stop 'em? by Wansu · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Why not create a "modified division" for those who take performance enhancing substances?

    --
    Wansu, th' chinese sailor
    1. Re:Why stop 'em? by Opportunist · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Because in some countries, the athlets wouldn't take them willingly. They're simply "convinced" that it's better for their health. Or that of their loved ones.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  3. Things will change. by PHAEDRU5 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    A few years out we're going to be watching athletic events that *highlight* the mods. ("Fred Bloggs is using corpuscles engineered at Georgia Tech that guarantee his ability to sprint for 15 minutes without having to take a breath.")

    This whole bias against tech augmentation is getting me down. The sooner we embrace it, and the more we embrace it, the longer we'll live, and with higher quality of life.

    Hell, we ought to be giving awards to people who volunteer to test exotic human enhancement technologies right now.

    --
    668: Neighbour of the Beast
    1. Re:Things will change. by paleo2002 · · Score: 4, Interesting

      This brings up a number of new problems:

      1) Do we mix the cyborgs, mutants, and chemically-enhanced athletes together or have separate leagues?

      2) Will there be a "research capital cap"?

      3) If a player's arm lands in the stands, does someone get to keep it?

  4. Re:Sport is dead by whereiswaldo · · Score: 2, Interesting

    It's rare that I can stand watching olympic sports. I mean, the difference between first and second can be a hundredth of a second! To me it's ridiculous sitting through events that are won and lost by insignificant amounts of time. An athlete could sneeze and lose that much time.

    Then you've got sports that measure style (diving, ice skating) and are just crying out to be biased. I won't even mention the scandals and corruption.

    I love that athletes put such devotion into their sport, but the whole olympics thing is just off-putting.

  5. Libertarians Beware by TheVelvetFlamebait · · Score: 3, Interesting

    These people are free to choose to restrict their own freedoms. If they want to do this, who are we to try to stop them?

    --
    You know, there is a difference between trolling and pointing out the flaws in your reasoning. Just saying.
  6. Re:Why do we still care? by dykofone · · Score: 2, Interesting
    You know, I kinda follow your logic, and want it carried out to the full extent. Let's have two sets of athletes. First, the "cup-pissers," a group of archaic old fogies who demand that we only have athletic events that mimic our ancestors hunting abilities as they run around in loin cloths. And second, the "glory-of-human-potential" category, where they are allowed to take absolutely whatever strange chemicals they desire, have neural implants overriding pain receptors, and hell, even replace their heart with a Plutonium powered mirco-turbine.

    And let's just guess which group gains more notoriety and fame...