fact that many athletes not only risk death but will pay in excess of one thousand dollars per injection of this powerful yet potentially lethal drug.Media coverage can provide athletes and athletic events with positive recognition and coverage however the amount of negative coverage surrounding the current athletic environment is rivalling the good coverage. Although it is only a minority of athletes indulging in these unfair practices, a majority of media coverage is focused on this group, which affects all athletes. It lessens the enjoyment and satisfaction of winning honestly due to the scrutiny surrounding drugs in athletics, dishonest athletes and officials. Fitting perfectly to the theme is the case of C J Hunter, the champion American shot putter and husband of world champion sprint marvel Marion Jones. Hunter tested positive four times within one year to the steroid ‘nandralone’. This information was released during the Sydney Olympics, which sparked a media frenzy. Hunter repeatedly claimed his innocence however despite the truth of his claims, his reputation was badly scarred however it also cast doubt over the amazing achievements of his wife and in reality the whole of the American track and field team suffered from this coverage.It is obvious that performance enhancing drug use is on the rise with thirty-five cheats identified and disciplined before and during the Sydney Olympic games. As the hypothesis states personal interest and participation is inversely proportional to the increase in drug use within athletics. There is no longer any incentive for personal bests, individual achievement or just pure enjoyment in participation, rewards and incentives are only for the winner of a championship race and are financially based. Perhaps the best example of this comes from Jim Millman, chief executive of a US-based sport-marketing group, when he stated, “Winning the gold medal is mandatory from a marketing pe...
