A report in a newspaper circulated throughout...

A report in a newspaper circulated throughout the Soviet Union revealed that some top Soviet athletes have used steroids and warned of the health dangers posed by the drugs.

The article in a recent issue of Sovietsky Sport focused on drug problems among athletes in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk. Although it gave little indication of how widespread the problem is, the article was a rare disclosure of drug violations by Soviet athletes.

Soviet sports regulations prohibit the use of steroids and other drugs, and Soviet officials have characterized “doping” as a problem among Western athletes.