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June 29, 2007
Wrestling With the Issue of Steroids
During the "Hill Man Morning Show" on Boston rock radio station WAAF, host Greg Hill was discussing the Chris Benoit murder-suicide story, and how steroids may have played a part in Benoit's actions. He went as far as to suggest that there should be drug testing implemented in professional wrestling, just like other major sports like baseball and football. But what we all must remember is that "professional wrestling" is not the same as other sports. In the NFL and the MLB, the NHL and the NBA, every team goes out each night with a chance to win, with no outcome guaranteed. But professional wrestling does not share that ideal. The wrestling people watch on tv is all about entertainment and ratings, and its matches are predetermined in order to create the biggest buzz and hype for the WWE. Major sports are about entertainment, but they are also about the purity of the sport and teams of talented athletes striving to be the best in their sport. The WWE and its brand of wrestling is about making money and giving the people what they want to see. There is no real purity about it. Jemele Hill of ESPN.com declares that; Although pro wrestling makes no illusions about its purpose, the countless deaths suggest it's time to scrutinize what goes on there with the same seriousness as in the NBA or NFL. Pro wrestling is still sports entertainment, which doesn't make it all that different from the sports leagues that don't have predetermined outcomes. In fact, the issue of predetermined outcomes does make them totally different, which makes mandatory drug testing nearly impossible for wrestlers. There's no way the WWE will ban its stars for using anabolic steroids, or any other drugs. Do I want to see changes made? Yes. Will the WWE institute a drug testing policy that will be enforced? I doubt it. The murder-suicide of Chris Benoit and his family is another black eye for wrestling, but like the deaths of Owen Heart and Eddie Guerrero, the WWE will continue as is.
Joe Dumas
12:43 AM
Trackback PingsTrackBack URL for this entry: CommentsSo, is what you're saying that drug-testing for pro wrestlers is like drug-testing musicians or actors? I agree that there is a stark difference between the WWE and MLB, and it's too bad more people don't realize that. I think more people are influenced by the things that Lindsay Lohan puts in her head than what Rob Van Dam puts in his body. Posted by:
I do not follow WWE, but read that a lot of these performers have died at an extremely young age. This feels like a workplace safety issue. When coal miners started dying young the authorities eventually stepped in to improve working conditions. Maybe the time has come for the same to happen with WWE. McMahon is not injecting steroids into the wrestlers or feeding them pills, but the mine owners weren't pumping coal dust directly into miners' lungs either. Posted by:
The WWE has mandatory drug testing and they have fired people for testing positive (though they later hired them back). They don't disclose what they're testing for, and nobody has been fired for steroid use, but they go through the motions of doing testing. The WWE did make changes after Owen Hart's death- they no longer lower people from the rafters. It should be noted that unlike most wrestling deaths which involve heart attacks or premature death from drug abuse, Owen Hart's death was a legitimate accident and could have happened in any hockey or basketball arena where a mascot rappels from the catwalk. Posted by:
as already mentioned, the WWE has had a "wellness policy" in place since shortly after the death of Eddy Guerrero in 2005. Of course, its stringency is another matter. Wrestlers can be on steroids IF they have a legitimate doctor's prescription. You can see the potential for abuse there. Also, wrestlers are (and always have been) independent contractors, which has always allowed the promoters to hold a giant hammer over them. The quickest way to become a pariah in the wrestling business is to suggest a union. that got Sgt Slaughter fired from the WWF in the early 1980s. Posted by:
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