PHELPS, A-ROD SHOW DOUBLE STANDARDS

Two world-class athletes have been involved in drug scandals in the
last two weeks, and the disparity between the actions and the
punishments highlight a strange hypocrisy in the world of pro sports
with regards to drugs.

Earlier this month, eight-time Olympic gold medal winning swimmer
Michael Phelps was embarrassed publically after photographs were
released showing him apparently smoking what could be marijuana from a
bong at a college party.

Shortly afterwards, a report came out indicating that New York Yankee
slugger Alex Rodriguez had tested positive for steroid use in 2003, as
a part of a preliminary drug survey for Major League Baseball.

Both athletes went into the expected damage control modes, Phelps by
apologizing for his indiscretion, Rodriguez by fessing up to using
steroids from 2000 to 2003 while he was with the Texas Rangers.

So essentially, both athletes were apologizing for getting caught. But
they've both been tied together through circumstance and by their
punishments (or lack thereof) - Phelps by being suspended for three
months from the US swim team and the loss of a sponsorship from
Kellogg's, and Rodriguez . . . well he's not getting punished at all.

The inequity of these results is clear given the difference between
the drugs in question and their effects on their sports.

It seems rather obvious that marijuana offers no performance-enhancing
qualities towards swimming, and if anything would hurt a swimmer. It
is, of course, an illicit drug, but one that society has a confusing
attitude towards.

A 2008 survey by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime
indicated that over 17 per cent of Canadians and 12 per cent of
Americans between the ages of 18 to 64 used cannabis in one form or
another during the previous year.

That puts it almost on the same level as tobacco use, which was 18 per
cent in 2008, according to Health Canada. As well, support for
legalization, or decriminalization of marijuana continues to grow,
with some surveys giving it the support of a majority of Canadians.

While neither tobacco nor marijuana is exactly healthy, it's clear
that society's viewpoint on pot is changing towards growing approval.

Canada went through it's own Olympic marijuana scandal of its own with
Ross Regabliati in 1998, after the gold-medal winning snowboarder was
found to have traces of pot in his system. Initially stripped of his
medal, cooler heads prevailed to reinstate him, and Regabliati
eventually went on to have a sport and country-appropriate marketing
deal.

That we'd essentially be back at square one 11 years later is
surprising. Let's face it, 23-year-olds - especially those that have
cash to spare - are going to smoke pot. Pretending that Phelps is
going to be a saint because he won a bunch of medals is foolish.

Thankfully, the overzealous South Carolina sheriff who wanted to
charge Phelps with ... something, anything, has backed off.

Meanwhile, Rodriguez's steroid use will go unpunished by baseball
because it occurred before there was an official penalty for them,
which is just as good as allowing them.

So he gets off scot-free on a technicality.

And while the ultimate performance-enhancing effect of steroids on
baseball isn't really known, it's clear that at least the intent of
them is get an edge on other players, going right to the heart of the
integrity of the sport, with the sport itself sharing some of the
blame for turning a blind eye for so long, but surely, this has to
rank as the greater offense.

Rodriguez claims he's now clean, and while that's probably true, it's
hard to say that he can ever really be trusted again. Perhaps he's
saved his Hall of Fame eligibility by copping to the use instead of
stonewalling, but that's up to baseball writers, to believe.

In the meantime, he's earned $250-million-plus from playing baseball
and will continue to earn big bucks for the remainder of his career,
while Phelps has suffered financially and professionally for an act
that had nothing to do with his performance in the pool, and for
something that a good portion of the public doesn't have a problem
with.

The two actions are difficult to reconcile, in terms of both the
public reaction and their consequences to the athletes involved, and
it's time for sports to take a look at which actions really deserve
punishment, and which deserve nothing more than a yawn.