OLYMPIC OFFICIAL RIPS MCGWIRE

LAUSANNE, Switzerland - A top Olympic official called Mark McGwire a
"souped up" hero, worshiped by Americans who don't care about fighting
drugs in sports. McGwire, who used a muscle-building supplement during
the season he hit a record 70 home runs, was attacked again Thursday
at the conclusion of the International Olympic Committee's anti-doping
meeting.

"The closer you are to the Olympic movement, the more you are
concerned about doping," IOC vice president Dick Pound of Canada said.

"The farther away from it you are, the less you care. All of a sudden
you are in Mark McGwire land, and this is a national hero all souped
up," Pound said.

McGwire openly uses androstenedione, which is banned by the IOC, NFL,
NCAA and other bodies. The dietary supplement is not banned by Major
League Baseball.

McGwire and America's attitude toward doping in sports came in for
frequent criticism after White House drug czar Barry McCaffrey told
delegates at the start of the meeting Tuesday that the IOC must
institute reforms to regain credibility in the anti-doping fight.

Sebastian Coe of Britain, a two-time Olympic 1,500-meter champion,
cited reports that sprinter Dennis Mitchell escaped a drug ban by
claiming his positive test resulted from sex and drinking beer the
night before.

The case "stretched credibility to a breaking point," said
Coe.

IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch referred to McCaffrey and the
U.S. doping situation in his wrapup news conference Thursday.

"We're very thankful he's so interested in the IOC, but we also told
him he had many problems in his own country with doping," Samaranch
said.