Doping, burritos, tears: Welcome to track and field, 2021
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Doping, burritos, tears: Welcome to track and field, 2021
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May 13, 2021, 5:00 a.m. ET
Credit.Michelle Groskopf for The New York Times
Ms. Crouse is an Opinion writer and producer.
If you’re an elite athlete today and don’t want to risk being accused of doping, you might want to skip your medicine. Don’t eat liver the night before a race. In fact, consider dropping meat altogether. Maybe avoid sex, too. Tests required by the World Anti-Doping Agency are now so sensitive, they can pick up trace amounts of banned substances from unexpected sources.
When Brenda Martinez, an Olympian and one of the top track and field athletes in America, tested positive for a banned substance in September 2020, the source was a prescription drug that is not athletically performance-enhancing or even prohibited: an antidepressant. Her pills were contaminated with a diuretic that was not listed on the label and is not allowed. The episode almost derailed her career.