Drug Testing Takes Center Stage at Olympics
December 17, 2007 - Filed under: Faculty & Staff | Tagged: Educated Guesses, Health
The upcoming Beijing Olympics may be the first modern day games where drug testing gets more attention than the events, predicts Dr. Mike Perko, chair of The University of Alabama’s health science department.
“A serious world-wide adoption of drug testing in organized professional and amateur sports, both in the U.S. and Europe, will occur in 2008,” says Perko, author of “Taking One for the Team: The New Thinking On Dietary Supplements and Young Athletes.”
“As skill levels increase faster than genetics, a wide variety of sports such as tennis, golf, cricket, and race car driving will all adopt or enhance drug testing,” Perko says. “Unfortunately, we can expect more and more world-class athletes to be caught as well in the upcoming year.”
The University of Alabama, a student-centered research university, is experiencing significant growth in both enrollment and academic quality. This growth, which is positively impacting the campus and the state's economy, is in keeping with UA's vision to be the university of choice for the best and brightest students. UA, the state's flagship university, is an academic community united in its commitment to enhancing the quality of life for all Alabamians.
SOURCE: Dr. Mike Perko, 205/348-2956 (office), 205/556-3457 (home), mperko@ches.ua.edu