FAZ: the IOC has exposed while revalidating the 1550 control samples Summer Olympic games in Beijing (2008) and London (2012) exactly 100 athletes taking doping. So, the system of anti-doping is still working?
Pericles Simon: No. The IOC has benefited from the investigations of some media. He knew that had to be sought and from whom. Thus, it turned out, from the point of view of sports, a high quota (exactly 6,5%) positive samples when re-testing. We used several new methods of proof. Evident that the focus on certain fall of the country whose athletes have used long-known means.
First of all, Russians, other Eastern Europeans and Asians then also had to return the medals. Does this mean that the West is clean?
— Very unlikely. Therefore, it is impossible to talk about the running system of anti-doping. It is still the same as before. In the West, the doping take otherwise. From the trial of former professional cyclists lance Armstrong (Lance Armstrong), the former athlete Marion Jones (Marion Jones) and others, we know that these host doping athletes politechnichny.
They poison themselves with all that is on the market?
Yes. All that seems to them something that you cannot prove, but which could improve the result, all these means these athletes are taking. Then analysts can be difficult to recognize these manipulations.
But sports officials say that getting closer to those who have been doping..
— …That I believe is highly questionable. It’s no secret that there is a glimpse into the laboratory. Everyone is familiar with each other. However the one who takes drugs knows that analyst. develop a verification method. But through the Agency, WADA, through the appropriate bodies, the heads of sports federations in contact with those who directs the investigations, the exchange of information. When, for example, equip anti-doping laboratory for the Olympic games, behind the scenes you know in advance what and how will be monitored, what methods of verification are applied and which are not. In the sense of transparent to the fight against doping because it is also important that it became known to the public. But while all this is happening so that first of all, this information comes mainly sports officials or sports doctors who work with the federations. We have the example of bribery in athletics were able to learn how it works today.
The hedgehog is still always ahead?
For me, it’s too nice comparison. While we know that on both sides, on the side of doping and anti doping, is preparing a massive weapon. Athletes are experimenting with their bodies in a way that we twenty years ago thought was impossible. Their environment is working as it on the example of Russia has disclosed the report of McLaren (McLaren), sometimes together with the secret services. It is familiar to us in the GDR. On the other hand, the fight against doping partially negate the laws of mathematics, just to get at least one positive sample. Here there is a massive arms race as during the cold war.
Do you think that the anti-doping laboratories make mistakes in counting methods?
— Error with the methods described in relevant is highly unagaeva scientific journal, and it coincides with my experience. An article in the EMBO-Report (“Doping and drug testing”) States that the laboratories do not adhere to normal scientific practice when they apply the test for Epo (Epo massively increases endurance).
What do You accuse analysts?
— Checks for the Ero, there are impure, as well as the purely manipulative laboratory methods. In addition, the probability contradicts the test results. I believe that from ten to fifty percent of athletes who have supposedly discovered the use of Epo, never with any EPO was not the case.
How You came to Your conclusion?
— It is possible to count. Anti-doping laboratory in the search for evidence develop such a speed that they can confidently investigate a possible very small amount of EPO. Unfortunately, they use too soft of criteria for security checks, which they eventually have to ensure that from exactly 30 thousand samples of EPO per year and have fewer positive samples would have been received incorrectly. Example: test for EPO, the same passes the first test for HIV that is based on their insecurity in Germany in the case of obtaining a positive result entails a second, completely different running a test PCR. It is considered the most reliable in the world with a score from one to four incorrectly received positive results for 10 of thousands of samples. How big is the quota incorrectly received positive samples of this test, however, depends to a large extent on quotas really HIV positive, as the quota of incorrectly received positive samples of doping can vary depending on the quota of doping. If I only check the host doping athletes, that none of them will get a wrong positive result, while the same test for the team with many not taking doping is a disaster. It is clear to every fifth grader. But I saw in court that one head of the laboratory is vehemently denied. And his acknowledged right. The laws of mathematics and logic by the sports court were invalid. The fight against doping is terminated.
You claim that competition from barred athletes who took dope?
— Yes, this can happen because the lab is not ready purely to assess the quota incorrectly received positive results on the basis of the test criteria or quotas of alleged doping. It doesn’t matter. We need to know the quota of dope for individual substances to purely identify incorrect quota checks. Although we know that the sport is taken quite a lot of doping, but we can only approximately determine the quota, and we can’t assume that every athlete taking performance-enhancing drugs, do 400 takes all substances to which each individual check today checked. In contrast, the quota for special doping drug EPO, many are not much higher than 5%, even if 50% of athletes in the team are taking doping. Actually, we need independent experts, epidemiologists, experts in biostatistics and pharmacology, all of which more accurately analyzed. This is the next problem.
What is it?
— Anti-doping agencies are integrated into the sports system. It all circulates inside the wrong places, than if the information came out to the relevant authorities. Russian athletes long before he became famous for the scandal, appealed to WADA. What happened? WADA has informed the Russian Federation: “Here cavil athletes who say that all of you are taking doping”. Under the Charter, such an act was to be investigated, but the result was not an investigation, and at first silence, and after the exposure through the media recriminations of the anti-doping authorities. Then there are people or not, or do not want, respectively, to respond to criticism of the system. Had to take considerable steps so something like this doesn’t happen.
What do You mean?
— Let’s start with the situation at home. National anti-doping Agency should be responsible only for the control of doping, and not to carry out the processes and be responsible for the prevention. They must be absolutely independent of the sport and the state. Analytics urgent help is needed from the scientific perspective, independent of the sport.
Leading sports officials criticized you because You were talking about, approximately 40% of the leading athletes taking doping. Whether You stay at this opinion?
Yes. All the sports recognized by the quota doping rechecking the IOC showed exactly 6,5%, an increase of six times too low. Everyone knows who intensively deals with leading athletes. Only false functionary contributes to strong distortion of the facts, if it protects the host doping.
But You don’t claim that 40% of all the so-called top athletes took doping, isn’t it?
— This is true. Really good research has revealed only one reliable criterion for the issue of the likelihood of doping: this level of achievement, while we know almost nothing about the impact of sport and only speculate. At the level of the highest achievements, where we are talking about the top ten best in the world, there is a very high quota of doping. But if I go to elite sports schools in Germany, whose athletes from the population are already considered the leading athletes, because they are among peers were the best. you won’t find was the doping of the quota. If we descend another step lower into the category of Amateur sports for all in the triathlon or in the fitness Studio, I will again find a quota of 15%.
What does it mean?
— There is probably an area where prevention works. There are idealists who want to do sports in sport rules, that is clear. Here’s where we should start and ask why one of these idealists later became one of the ten best in the world with this high doping ratio.
What are your answers?
For example, it is possible through investigation to expose the mechanisms of pressure in an organized sport.
What do You mean?
— A fine form to push the athlete to take doping. The most basic are meaningless the norms of tolerance, for example, the German athletes for international competitions at the Olympic games. Norms are guided by the global elite, which however, as we know. infected doping. There are coaches who told me:” Mr. Simon, I don’t know how I can motivate my younger athlete in connection with these regulations”. Then there is the possibility of selection. Leading athletes rarely say what they are because of their purity can not get to major competitions. Instead, they gather in training camps with other athletes out there that lock their refrigerators, and that in the course of the year an amazing way to reach the peaks, but in normal times remain below the level of still pure competitors. Such subtle way they can encourage athletes who, in fact, any interest in the doping do not show.
In the new concept of high performance sports and the German Sports Federation (DSB) we are talking about fair play and purity as key assumptions. The aim of the reform is to increase the number of medals obtained, the Minister of the interior Thomas de Mezieres (Thomas de Maizière) wants at least a third more medals. How it goes?
— Absolutely no way. If fair play and cleanliness are prerequisites, without that sport knows how to do it, — he himself says that the anti-doping system is only operational in a few countries, then there is a huge pressure. It goes to the athletes, coaches using this concept. Those who pay taxes, say: this is the basic premise and wash my hands. If someone is doping, they’re leaving him like a hot potato, which no longer want to do a selfie. It is a disease. Time signals were not received. Or,at least, didn’t react accordingly. The main prerequisites are not fair play and purity, and that is this: leading functionaries, as it turns out, the corrupt, the anti-doping system is working or not in all areas, or is it because of their dependence on institutions cannot function as we would like. And in the League of medals, which are oriented, we have a very high quota of doping.
Permission to doping could lead to numerous deaths, perhaps already a minor. Which way You think is best to dope, at least, reduced?
— If you have even the sport of high achievements is funded through taxes, then you have a lot of money to invest in prevention. Organized sports and the Minister of internal Affairs do in fact say that they do not need the sport of high achievements at any cost. If this is true, if you want to have a socially acceptable sport with a sense of human dignity, then we have to react, not to do so, if the number of medals to justify the investment. Then get the opposite of what we wanted: we follow a sick society and sports, we are contributing to the disease at the expense of the athletes. that is, we want pathological suffering and want to achieve an unclean way. A clear message has a new, partially improved concept of the sport is to achieve the best possible results, while paying enough attention to the athletes or their opponents.
You are advocating a radical rethinking?
Otherwise we will have no success. But the prospects are good.Look at young athletes as they enjoy the opportunity to participate in the competition, even when every step brings pain. They learn from sport of high achievements, how to deal with defeat, others manage with less talent to get ahead. They get knowledge on the basic topic: where are the limits of our capabilities? How can I use its potential to divide or not to harm others? In fact, it’s a beautiful thing. We need to invest the time and money to such values could be used pedagogically. And how can I benefit from this, how can I make it clear to the population that the movement brings joy. And that it might be important to give the competition as it’s within the basic principles. The number of medals may not be the number one goal. Such a purpose may be the athlete’s own responsibility, which can protect your ideal of clean sport all the way to the top. Then again we can learn from sport of high achievements.
