Inessa Kravetz's Appeal
to Ukrainian Athletes

The life of many athletes is not just constant gatherings, trainings, and competitions. It is also a fear of sabotage, where someone might slip a forbidden substance into food or drink when an unsuspecting athlete is not paying attention. Athletes fear the impact of the drugs themselves; in addition, they also fear the prospect of being overshadowed by their competitors who are using illegal substances to improve their athletic performance.

At the same time, millions of athletes are honestly following the Olympic principles of integrity and fair sportsmanship of athletic competition. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) categorically rejects all attempts of cheating that harm the health and life of athletes.

It is critical that athletes realize that even the highest athletic achievement in major competitions, or the highest prize can not substitute for good health and life.

Sports should be protected from the lack of social trust. Recent scandals connected with the positive results of drug-tests given to athletes, have lead to the unwillingness of sponsors to continue awarding contracts supporting athletics.

An athlete must get the highest level of physical education so as to achieve his or her peak physical form. The special knowledge about the harm of drug abuse is critical.

The use of anabolic steroids is potentially harmful for the health, while it can lead to an advantage over competitors.

A new risk for athletes who use drugs is the "Black Market." As a rule, cheap and well-tried anabolic steroids are sold on this market under new names created by drug-producers.

Two of the greatest dangers for athletes are the "Black Market" of sports medicine, which uses the modern technologies in the field of nutrition to create all kinds of substances; and harmful natural substances that are hidden under the guise of harmless traditional medicine, named after plant origins.

The lack of knowledge of anti-doping rules doesn't free us from the responsibility for their violation.

Scientific research in the field of the highest sports achievements proves that multiple usage of anabolic steroids leads to different diseases that can appear after athletes leave their sport careers.

It is known that different kinds of stimulants, especially narcotics, damage the central nervous system and lead to addiction.

Anabolic steroids ruin the human body, destroying vital organs such as the liver, kidneys, and hormones. They also cause cancer, harm women's reproductive systems, and inflict early impotence in men.

Different medicines that change the oxygen capacity of blood may lead to the very serious violation of functional stability of the organism, and even some diseases like AIDS.

The usage of hormone medicine may cause pathological and hormonal changes in women, causing them to lose their natural female image, and ruin their sportsman psyche.

The uncompromising struggle with drug abuse among athletes today should embody the triumph of ethical values.

The results of this struggle depend on us.

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