Dara just one the national title in the 100M Freestyle in 54.4 at the ripe old age of 40. Simply Incredible. :applaud: :woot:
If that's not inspiring I don't know what is.
Former Member
...but bashing her on the basis of the above is pointless.
Voicing skepticism is not "bashing." Reread my post. I said that I thought she was either 1) an anomaly, or 2) juiced. And for the record, I am not a "Dara hater" either.
For the sake of argument, if she were using exogenous hGH (and I am not saying that she is), I think it would be difficult to prove, particularly in light of the fact that she is using amino acid supplements (which stimulate endogenous hGH release).
I am lost in your logic......3 World Records in the 80's yet because she didn't get a medal in the Olympics she was "not as great"?
You still haven't answered the question of what you consider to be ownership of an event? A world record doesn't add up to your standards of excellence?
Tracy...are you thinking this thru? Being one of 4 people on the 4x 100 relays and winning gold/setting a WR in the RELAY is not owning the 50 or 100 free. "Owning" an event is what Michael Phelps has done...go undefeated for 6 years and set the WR multiple times during that time frame.
Dara got her first individual success in 96' after a 7 year layoff when she moved to Northern California and trained along Jenny Thompson at Stanford...and by the way go back and look at her physique during that comeback...then she again takes 7 years off...comes back far leaner and stronger and goes faster at age 41.
Hard to believe she is doing this with some miracle coach(s)/training regime and that the top coaches in the world are that far behind...is she doing everything she should be doing as far as testing, yes...is there the possibility that the next generation of drugs is already at play out there...no doubt. Does this mean we should be debating and considering everything going on...I think so. Am I accusing her of cheating..NO, and I asking the hard questions based on the evidence, YES!
And George since you asked and for what it's worth the answer is "No" I am not and never have taken ANY drug/supplement or otherwise unknown agent that was, is or could be illegal. If I'm cheating now I need a refund because although some may consider my times fast they are far off my best and if I'm going to cheat they better be faster and I damn well better not be carrying around 20 extra lbs for the effort/time/cost! It's friggin masters!
A fellow forumite shared with me that the new testing is not looking for any chemical in particular. Rather, they are monitoring changes and fluctuations in general blood and urine chemistry. This would explain the need for such a number of samples that Dara has provided over the past few months.
In any case, it would seem rather foolish to enter oneself into such a drug testing program if the individual were in fact using a banned substance. It's one thing to submit to regular testing and hoping for the best, but to go out of your way...that's another story I think.
In any case, it would seem rather foolish to enter oneself into such a drug testing program if the individual were in fact using a banned substance. It's one thing to submit to regular testing and hope for the best, but to go out of your way...that's another story I think.
Br J Sports Med. 2006 Jul;40 Suppl 1:i35-9.
Human growth hormone doping in sport.Saugy M, Robinson N, Saudan C, Baume N, Avois L, Mangin P.
Swiss Laboratory for Doping Analyses, Institute of Legal Medicine, Lausanne, Switzerland.
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) has been on the list of forbidden substances since availability of its recombinant form improved in the early 1990s. Although its effectiveness in enhancing physical performance is still unproved, the compound is likely used for its potential anabolic effect on the muscle growth, and also in combination with other products (androgens, erythropoietin, etc.). The degree of similarity between the endogenous and the recombinant forms, the pulsatile secretion and marked interindividual variability makes detection of doping difficult. Two approaches proposed to overcome this problem are: the indirect method, which measures a combination of several factors in the biological cascade affected by administration of GH; and the direct method, which measures the difference between the circulating and the recombinant (represented by the unique 22 kD molecule) forms of GH. This article gives an overview of what is presently known about hGH in relation to sport. The available methods of detection are also evaluated. METHODS: Review of the literature on GH in relation to exercise, and its adverse effects and methods of detection when used for doping. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The main effects of exercise on hGH production and the use and effects of rhGH in athletes are discussed. Difficulties encountered by laboratories to prove misuse of this substance by both indirect and direct analyses are emphasised. The direct method currently seems to have the best reliability, even though the time window of detection is too short. hGH doping is a major challenge in the fight against doping. The effect of exercise on hGH and its short half-life are still presenting difficulties during doping analysis. To date the most promising method appears to be the direct approach utilising immunoassays.
What are immunoassays gull? Is this something that USADA might be doing with all of these samples they are taking? If the sampling is random, which I think it is, the short half life would become less of an issue, no?
What are immunoassays gull? Is this something that USADA might be doing with all of these samples they are taking? If the sampling is random, which I think it is, the short half life would become less of an issue, no?
An immunoassay is a method for measuring the concentration of a substance using an antibody which binds to it.
Even with random sampling, a short half life will be problematic.
Plus..... Growth Hormone is just one ingrediant in PED cocktail that we keep reading about. Insulin is equally difficult to test for. Even EPO is still not reliably tested for after a decade or more in sports.
If Balco can make a drug like THG (the clear) and pass all the drug tests for years, then why should anyone believe that drug testing is on top of the game at this point?
WADA and USADA may be confident in their testing, but I am not. We have heard of too many elite athletes that are cheaters and have passed all their drug tests.
Saying that someone has passed their drug tests has come to mean less and less every year.
Look.... if somone is taking magical protein powder 10 times a day and it is really pumping up their Growth Hormone levels, does it matter if they are taking 1 pill, 1 injection or 10 scoops a day?
John Smith
I'm pretty well convinced that she's doping. Nothing adds up otherwise. She used to look normal, and now she's a super-lean muscle woman. Nothing she has said about how she trains, supplements, or eats even comes close to accounting for the transformation.
