Blood drug test

Last week I cast skepticism on Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt’s incredible feats at these Olympics — shattering the world records in both the 100- and 200-meters. Not surprisingly, there were some who disagreed, who want to believe that Bolt earned that record from one side understood with difficulty work, powerful homegrown yams and his pre-race Chicken McNuggets. Admittedly, I’d love to believe that too. Unfortunately, I just can’t.

Yet, in that place was one other unbelievable performance at these Games. Years from now, we’ll look back at 2008 in Beijing and two things will stand out: Bolt’s lightning speed around the Bird’s Nest track, and Michael Phelps assuming superhero powers in the Water Cube pool.

In eight events, Phelps set seven world records, particular by ridiculously large margins. In winning eight gold medals, he did something no one had forever done before. So why does Phelps receive the benefit of the doubt but not Bolt? It’s a fair question.

Put simply, Phelps’ growth curve is a bit contrasted and the testing standards notwithstanding his abode nation are significantly different.

Bolt entered these Games as a curiosity, while Phelps had long ago established himself as swimming’s version of a bull in a world-record shop.

Phelps was an age-group acknowledged chief since the time he learned to hold his breath underwater. When he was 11 years old, his coach, Bob Bowman, was already convinced he’d someday be an Olympic champion. In 2000, Phelps was the youngest male Olympian since 1932. A year later, he became the youngest swimmer to at any time break a earth register. His path was always pointed to a historic performance of a piece we saw this month in Beijing.

This isn’t to suggest that Bolt wasn’t also a rising star (in fact, at 16, he was the youngest world champion ever). But their relative paths were different. For most of his competitive life, when Phelps wasn’privately performing in the floating pool, he was performing for doping officials behind closed doors.

“I’ve been tested after every final session and a few preliminary sessions I’ve been doing since I got here, and in Singapore and at the training camp in Palo Alto,” he said last week. “From the trials to it being so that, I’d say by a rough estimate there’s been 40 tests. That’s a bunch. But it’s part of the game and good for the sport to have it.”

For the final cause of accuracy, Bolt has also faced plenty of tests. After enchanting his third gold medal of these Games, hither’s what he said: “I’ve been tested so many times in the competition I’ve lost count. We know we’re good, we know we’re clean. We work hard and any measure you want to test us, it’s OK.”

Here’s the difference: The United States has a much more stringent testing program. Jamaica doesn’t even have some accredited anti-doping method. The only times many athletes there — and in many other countries — are tested is when they’re in actual competition.

So any animal-water sample these past couple of weeks in Beijing — and not just in vestige — are virtually meaningless.

Not helping matters, four of the hindmost five 100-meter gold medalists have been linked to performance-enhancing drugs. By comparison, the jollity of swimming has the steroid stain of a suburban preschool.

“Anybody is versed to decide whatever they want,” Phelps said for the time of his chase for eight. “I know for me, I am clean.

“I did Project Believe with USADA, to which place I purposely wanted to do more tests to make trial of it. People can question it all they exist in need of, but the facts are the facts. And I have the results to prove it.”

To have existence favorable, Project Believe isn’t fool-proof each. But that serves more similar to a reflection on the state of sports than it does Phelps. Project Believe is a testing program in which certain athletes tender for additional — non-mandated — testing. It covers 12 athletes, including Phelps, Dara Torres and Tyson Gay.

As much as you might want to believe in Project Believe, when it comes to drug testing, you virtuous never know.

“I want to be absolutely clear . . . we can’cheek by jowl guarantee their cleanliness,” Ty Tygary, chief executive of USADA told Yahoo Sports.

The current drug testing program busted only six athletes at these Games. To propose that into perspective, four horses competing in equestrian show-jumping were found to exist dirty.

In all, more than 5,000 drug tests will be conducted at these Summer Olympics. Catching sole a maniple doesn’t tell me that the Games are suddenly clean. Unfortunately, it likely confirms our fears: The athletes are still light-years ahead of the drug testers.