THE UNIVERSITY of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's decision last week to raise its standards regarding steroid use within its athletic programs recognizes the necessity of a single sanction response to athletic dishonesty. The UNC policy now exceeds the expectations set by the NCAA and leaves the University's own policy in the dust. The University's current standards of response to steroid use do not send an adequate message to the abusers and set a lower expectation of conduct on the fields than in the classroom.
In the world of competitive athletics, steroid use has grown to such a level that some athletes must consider steroids just to keep apace with their competitors. On the college level, steroid use certainly exists but is frowned upon. Here at the University it is treated as just another "bad decision" that young adults might make; the current policy reacts by giving steroid abusers help and guidance rather than addressing the wrongs at the heart of the issue: dishonesty and cheating.
Steroid use cannot be viewed as a "mistake" of youth because choosing to take steroids is a conscious decision to destroy the formerly level playing field of athletics. An athlete taking steroids has forgone his or her own natural ability and relied upon an outside resource to achieve. In academics, unaccredited use of any outside source is plagiarism, and the University deals with plagiarism with an unwavering commitment to recognizing how wrong it is. In the same way that plagiarism is intellectual theft, the use of steroids to boost performance in athletics is a form of what might be called "ability theft."
An athlete on steroids has taken an ability that is not his or hers naturally and applied it against those who are competing with natural physical talent alone. Steroid use is as conscious a decision as plagiarism and cannot be seen as merely a "problem" of the likes of drugs or alcohol, because steroid use has the goal of placing oneself at a distinct advantage over one's opponents. Taking steroids is the equivalent of giving one athlete a head start or giving one student an unearned bonus on an exam. It removes any sense of fairness in the endeavor, and it is clearly a choice --not a mistake.
An athlete's use of steroids is basely dishonest on several levels. First, the University and the NCAA prohibit illegal steroid use in competitive sports. Any athlete taking steroids must necessarily conceal his or her actions from coaches, trainers and teammates or risk reprimand and suspension from the sport. The necessary concealment of steroid use flags the act as dishonest in and of itself; an athlete who abuses an ability-boosting drug on the sly cannot be treated in the same way as someone who "made a mistake," because the act of taking steriods is clearly intentional.
Secondly, an athlete's decision to use steroids disrespects the efforts of not only his or her opponents but also his or her teammates. Just as plagiarism in the classroom is dishonest because it takes advantage of the honesty of all other students involved, so also is a steroid user's action an even worse crime because it requires the honesty of all other students involved to succeed. Steroid users profit off of others' honesty and integrity, and this action should not be tolerated.
When asked about whether the University will reevaluate its own policies following the UNC decision, University Assistant Director of Athletics Ethan Saliba said, "When you establish a policy of absolutism with no caveat, you are usually forced to breach your policy or suffer the consequences of absolutism
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