Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California.

Earlier this week, Texas Congresswoman Sheila Jackson introduced a bill that would criminalize the use of performance enhancing drugs at international competitions like the Olympics. If passed as is, the bill could put manufacturers and distributors of banned substances in jail for a maximum of 10 years in addition to a US$250,000 fine.

However, athletes who compete at NCAA, NFL or Major League Baseball competitions would not be regulated under this potential law. That is, there would be no legal consequences for drug-takers in those sports – only league or university-specific ramnifications.

At the current time, the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame has restrictions on inducting athletes who are proven drug-takers while the International Swimming Hall of Fame has inducted various athletes who have been suspected of drug-taking (e.g., ).

While honors received by the IOC or FINA might not change, at least American athletes – like those from Germany and Japan – would face increased penalties with the proven use of drugs to aid their competitiveness in international competitions.

Copyright © 2008-2018 by World Open Water Swimming Association