Morrison 1

Jacob D. Morrison
Mr. Geist
Honors English Language Arts 10
19 February 2016
The Downfall of Professional Sports
Doping has become a very controversial topic in the sports industry. Performanceenhancing drugs (PEDs) have been around for centuries. The Ancient Greeks were the first to use
substances to reduce fatigue while competing in the Olympics. But, its only been in the last few
decades that the controversy has spiked bans of substances in competition. In 1991, Major
League Baseball (MLB) became one of the first to prohibit the use of steroids (Cashmore).
Reasoning behind these bans center around the health risks of the drugs as well as the
demoralization of the integrity of sports. Although, there are a multitude of rationalizing ideas
that support the use of performance-enhancing drugs in sports.
The health risks of performance-enhancing drug use can be very dangerous. Anabolic
steroids, one form of PEDs, can have a tremendous impact on ones hormonal, musculoskeletal,
and cardiovascular systems, and can damage the liver, and skin. Many life-threatening infections
like HIV and Hepatitis B and C can be contracted when unsterile methods of injection are used.
Anabolic Steroids can also have a negative effect on a users mental state and behavior, causing
aggression and delusions (What Are the Health Consequences of Steroid Abuse?). Many PEDs
also have an addicting quality, causing the user to spend ample amounts of time and money
acquiring the substance. The health risks of using performance-enhancing drugs can become life
threatening. Along with being life threatening, the result can question the integrity of the sport.

Morrison 2
If performance-enhancing drugs were introduced into sports, the integrity of sports would
be lost. The true, honest physicality of sports would vanish. Instead, the athletic world would be
overrun with medically enhanced athletes, giving them an unfair advantage over athletes who
chose to stay clean. Using drugs that artificially enhance ones physical or mental abilities is
cheating. If one was to look at it through the eyes of an aspiring professional athlete, it may seem
that doping is the only way to succeed in sports. This is unfair to many and isnt what sports are
about. The idea that anyone can achieve greatness in athletics may become obsolete if PEDs are
allowed in competition. In a survey led by Harris Interactive on behalf of the Foundation for
Global Sports Development (GSD), 2000 adults from across the U.S. were asked to answer
questions relating to doping in the Olympics. It was found that more than half of the adults asked
(51%) agreed with the statement that knowing that athletes have been caught using
performance-enhancing drugs in the past makes the Olympics less enjoyable. If professional
sports allows PEDs to be used by its athletes, the viewer count may plummet. When asked, 88%
agreed that there needs to be more action taken to prevent the use of PEDs at the
Olympics.(Survey Reveals That Majority of Americans Believe Olympics Less...) In the
publics opinion, sports can and should do without performance-enhancing drugs. They provide
an unfair advantage to those who use it and they eliminate the genuine physicality of sports.
Though many are against introducing performance-enhancing drugs into sports, there are
those who support it. Many claim that doping is already widespread in sports and that the bans
that disallow the use of any performance-enhancing drugs are ineffective. In 2005, former BYU
football player, Jason Scukanec, claimed that doping wasnt uncommon among D1 programs
(O'Boyle). There is evidence of organized doping programs around the country. Many believe
that its unfair to allow those who are naturally and genetically superior physically to excel. But,

Morrison 3
what about the saying hard work beats talent when talent doesnt work hard (Hard Work
Beats Talent Quotes.")? This applies to athletics immensely. It is possibly for those who are not
particularly talented in athletics to succeed in athletics if they work hard. Others try to negate the
common knowledge of the health dangers of PEDs by stating that if administered properly and
hygienically, the health problems diminish. This is untrue. If administered properly, the drugs
will most definitely still have a negative effect on your body. But above all, the truth is that
sports doesnt need performance-enhancing drugs.
If allowed, performance-enhancing drugs will destroy the sports industry. They provide
an unfair advantage to athletes and should be considered cheating. The health risks associated
with the use of PEDs are dangerous and are not worth the risks. To sum it up, if bans on
performance-enhancing drugs were lifted, professional sports and college sports alike would
become corrupt. Performance-enhancing drugs are unnecessary to provide an enjoyable form of
entertainment.
Citations:
Cashmore, Ellis. "Why Sport Should Allow Doping." CNN Wire Service 2015 nov 10: N.p. DB SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 18 Feb. 2016.
O'Boyle, Daniel. "Doping in College Football?" University Wire 2015 oct 13: N.p. DB - SIRS
Issues Researcher. Web. 18 Feb. 2016.
Tannsjo, Torbjorn. "The Moral Case Against Doping Bans." Boston Globe 2015 sep 13: K.1 DB
- SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 18 Feb. 2016.
"Survey Reveals That Majority of Americans Believe Olympics Less..." Business Wire. N.p.,
2014 jan 28. Web. 18 Feb. 2016.

Morrison 4
"What Are the Health Consequences of Steroid Abuse?" What Are the Health Consequences of
Steroid Abuse? N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2016.
"Hard Work Beats Talent Quotes." Search Quotes. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Feb. 2016.
Grading

Criteria
Content
and Ideas

Organization

Description
Clear argument about social issue
Support uses
- ethos
- logos
- pathos
4 or more credible sources used
Antithesis addressed and refuted

Diction/
Syntax/
Convention
s

Effective introduction and

conclusion include hook, thesis, and
final statement
3 organized paragraphs include
claims, explanations, and transitions
Sequence is logical

Writing is all in 3rd person

Quotations are embedded and
properly cited within the essay
0-3 Errors in grammatical structure

Points
0 10

20

30

40

29/40 PEER 1 Eric clear argument

(10/10), support used ethos, a bit of pathos,
but not clearly definable logos (9/10), only
about two or so credible sources used
(5/10), antithesis addressed, but not refuted
(5/10)
/40 PEER 2 Mother - Support from
multiple sources is used. The argument is
believed to be that it is not morally right to
use PEDs. Might just come out and make
a curt statement to this affect. 30/40
34/40 Self grade
0 10 20
30
=
28/30 PEER 1 Eric effective intro,
conclusion, hook, thesis, and final
statement (10/10), paragraphs include
claims and transitions, but may lack some
explanations (8/10), sequence is logical
(10/10)
/30 PEER 2 Mother - Could have a
stronger bold statement in the beginning.
The writing makes logical sense but might
add a few reinforcements. 22/30
28/30 Self grade
0 5 10
15
=
12/15 PEER 1 Eric writing in 3rd person
(5/5), quotations embedded, but do not
have a works cited page (3/5), few small
possible errors in grammatical structure
(4/5)
/15 PEER 2 Mother - Thought all these
points were covered. Only one
grammatical item noted. 13/15
15/15 Self grade

Morrison 5
Publication
/
Appearanc
e

Creative title/rough draft ready on

editing day 2/16-17
Proper MLA formatting; heading
that includes student name,
instructors name, class, and date
Works cited page is appended.

10

15

10/15PEER 1 Eric title is fine (5/5),

proper mla formatting (5/5), no works
cited page (0/5)
/15 PEER 2 Mother - Cannot speak to the
draft being ready or MLA formatting. No
appendage. 10/15
15/15 Self grade