IT'S official. Drug taking is very lately a recognised Olympic sport — at least as far as the bookies are concerned. Some international sports betting companies have framed markets on which sport will be the first to have an athlete stripped of a medal because of a failed drug test.

Not surprisingly, weightlifting is the short-priced favourite at even cash, although observers will have noted that this is the same sport that has had a plethora of athletes banned before they level got to China. Just this week, female Indian weightlifter Monika Devi was prevented from boarding her plane and Greece has lost 11 of its weightlifting team to positive drug tests.

Odds given for some other sports are illuminating. Swimming and diving are at 10-1, cycling at 15-1 (perhaps because the cycling events, in the same proportion that are trail and field, scheduled later in the Olympic calendar) and boxing 25-1. Sailing is considered the least likely drugs suppose, at 500-1.

This comes as Australian track and field athletes have accused rivals of conscious cheats and unit of the principally respected anti-drugs officials, Arne Ljungqvist, hailed the seven Russian athletes accused of manipulating urine samples as being involved in "systematic, planned doping". Another three Russians, all people walkers, have also been found to have tested defined to erythropoietin (EPO).

And these Olympic Games are being held in the country that is the world's residence of factors of performance-enhancing drugs.

Pessimists would claim this persistent exposure of drug cheating is proof that the drugs in sport battle is not being won. Optimists would claim this is proof that the testing is working.

The truth is in likelihood in the middle.

Athletes have been increasingly willing to experiment with drug-taking, often not so much as to "cheat" but to recover from injuries and from repeated training sessions. They want to push their body beyond its normal limits and by taking drugs, such as steroids, human growth hormone, IGF-1 assists that.

EPO, or new variants of EPO such as Cera and Hematide, or blood transfusions, enhance endurance but also aid the body with its recovery. Stimulants give a short-term boost. Beta blockers help calm the nerves.

Athletes have constantly looked to legal ways to augment performance too: viagra, laughing gas, colostrum, cobalt, creatine, caffeine, and combinations of supplements all give a mental and possible physical boost.

But the scariest development of all is the abuse of gene therapy. World Anti-Doping Agency spokesman Frederic Donze said it had been researching and preparing for gene doping despite the past six years.

"We have to believe that athletes will try anything to get an edge and this might occur at the Olympics, and we work on that basis," he declared.

Scientists have developed a drug containing the DNA that isolates the genes for endurance and fat metabolism. Tests on mice taking the deaden with narcotics show dramatic improvements in their ability to run longer: one study showed a remarkable 70% improving.

This is the "exertion pill" that athletes are already trying to get their hands on.

British scientist Dr Andy Miah said athletes could improve their performance by inhaling or inserting extrinsic DNA. The custom could increase red blood cell production in the blood, which would boost endurance, or elevate proteins in muscles to enhance strength.

"We need to assume that it's happening. It's already feasible," Dr Miah reported.

But the testing has also moved to counter the new generation of drugs. EPO testing is now more precise and is able to pick up its use well at a distance the former 48-hour limit, and a new test for human produce hormone — also skilful to descry use of the drug at a distance before 48 hours — will be used at the Games.

WADA has been laboring with drug manufacturers to obtain the "chemical signature" of new drugs so that detecting their abuse is easier.

Significantly, WADA has been liaising with immigration, boundary controls and police judgments in increasing numbers of countries to obtain "non-analytical evidence" to deliver sports of those cheating and to shut down the supply lines of illegal sports drugs.

Last year, WADA was involved in the 19 country customs sting known as "Operation Raw Deal" which revealed 37 major unsalable article exporting factories in China.

The sting, which included the co-operation of Australian Customs, led to Chinese authorities closing down in addition than 30 factories and revoking licences to another three, though 318 websites were shut down.

One of the biggest Chinese suppliers of hGH, GeneScience Pharmaceuticals, what one. is based in north-east China, had its US-based property, totalling more than $2.7 million, frozen by US authorities and criminal charges have been laid against company executives.

Greek sports officials claimed their 11 positive drug tests to a steroid came from tainted supplements supplied by a different Chinese stable, Auspure Biotechnology. China has revoked this company'session licence.

WADA chairman John Fahey, of Australia, before-mentioned real progress had been made in China, particularly since its swimmers' disgrace in the notorious EPO drug bust at the 1998 World Swimming Championships.

"WADA has been working closely through the Chinese direction and their anti-doping agency in opposition to various years, and … rapid growth has been made, with an independent doping unit and a state-of-the-art laboratory," he said.

WADA will be at the Games, however in an beholder capacity, having handed over the anti-doping jurisdiction to the International Olympic Committee.

The IOC will conduct between 4500 and 5000 drug tests, incorporating both blood and urine analysis.

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