True Champions Just Say No: A Content Analysis of Contemporary Anti-Doping Education

• In Event: Deviance, Leisure, and Consumption

Abstract

A steady stream of “drugs in sport” scandals coupled with an increasing public cynicism towards drug use in sport has forced national and international sport regulators to reconsider the utility of existing enforcement strategies. In response, anti-doping regulators have increased funding for a variety of education and outreach programs targeted towards athletes at all levels of sport. One such approach is the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) produced video series titled “Athlete Testimonials” wherein athletes discuss their attitudes and beliefs regarding drugs in sport and the role of anti-doping in sport. Drawing from a cultural studies perspective and employing qualitative document analyses, this research examines literature and videos produced by WADA anti-doping campaigns from 2017 to 2019. Thematic issues emerging from the data include; physical and emotional harms of PED use, legal and illegal drug use as unnecessary for sport success, and PED use as a moral issue. Importantly, many of these themes echo those found in studies of anti-drug campaigns from the “War on Drugs” era. In particular, a focus on harms to the body, and characterizing drug use as individual, moral and ethical behavior while largely ignoring structural and commercial components that drive drug use.

Author

• Ophir Sefiha, Western Carolina University