IOC Official: Steroid Users Deserve Lifetime Ban : Anita DeFrantz Says Stricter Punishment Needed for Those Testing Positive

Athletes who test positive for anabolic steroids should be banned for life from competing in the Olympics, one of two International Olympic Committee members from the United States said Monday.

Anita DeFrantz, president of the Amateur Athletic Foundation of Los Angeles and an outspoken anti-steroid crusader, said she intends to submit that proposal to IOC members at their annual session next month at San Juan, Puerto Rico.

She said that she has not spoken with IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch or any of the other members about the proposal but believes it will be well-received.

Under current IOC rules, an athlete can compete in the Olympics if he is eligible under the international rules of his sport.

But as a result of Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson’s disqualification at the 1988 Summer Olympics after testing positive for a steroid and subsequent revelations that he had been using the drug since 1981, there has been sentiment among some sports officials for stricter penalties.

According to the rules of track and field, Johnson can return to competition in September of 1990 and is eligible for the 1992 Summer Olympics. DeFrantz said her proposal would not apply for Johnson because it would not be retroactive.

“Our (IOC) medical commission has stressed rehabilitation of athletes who are using steroids, but I think it’s time to send a stronger message,” she said. “It’s not like athletes are taking them because they have a cold. They’re taking them to cheat.”

One person urging support of the proposal is Edwin Moses, a two-time Olympic gold medalist in the intermediate hurdles who is a member of the IOC’s athletes commission and chairman of the U.S. Olympic Committee’s substance abuse committee.

“I think the IOC athletes commission would favor that,” Moses said. “So far, we’ve tended to go along with the IOC. But I think we have to do something that’s going to have more effect in stopping the problem. Scare tactics about the health risks of steroids haven’t worked. Maybe the answer is lifetime bans for those who are caught.”

DeFrantz and Moses made their remarks at the end of a two-day conference at the Amateur Athletic Foundation that was described as the nation’s first consensus meeting on the dangers of steroid abuse. It was sponsored by the AAF, the USOC, the National Collegiate Athletic Assn. and the National Federation of State High School Assns.

Focusing on four areas--research, education, testing and rehabilitation--a report will be submitted to William J. Bennett, who is charge of the Bush administration’s drug-control policy, in September.

“There’s no question it was a worthwhile meeting,” USOC executive director Baaron Pittenger said. “We developed an atmosphere in which there can be broader cooperation than we’ve ever had, and I think there will be some significant developments along these lines as we build on this foundation.”

Pittenger said he was particularly impressed by a presentation made Monday by cyclist Cindy Olavarri of Albany, Calif., who was disqualified from the U.S. Olympic team in 1984 after testing positive for a steroid and since has reported various physical and emotional side effects from her use of those drugs and others.

“Life was very difficult for her the year after she was suspended,” Pittenger said. “But no one from the USOC or from the cycling federation called her to find out how she was doing. I don’t think any of us have given enough thought to what our responsibilities are to athletes who have fallen victim to steroids.”

Emphasizing that he was not stating a USOC position, Pittenger said he did not think DeFrantz’s proposal would be popular with most international sports federations and National Olympic Committees.

“Right now, I’d have to say that I’ve observed a willingness among the federations to have standardized rules and sanctions,” he said. “But everybody I see tends to lean toward a two-year suspension for the first violation and a lifetime ban for the second.”