A prominent authority on drug testing says that the indefinite baning of driver Jeremy Mayfield further indicates NASCAR’s need to make public their list of banned substances. By making public NASCAR’s list of banned substances, it would protect that organization from legal retributions.
Sources close to the fact indicate that Mayfield took Claritin D, an over-the-counter allergy drug that contains pseudoephedrine, a substance banned by most sports. Mayfield claims that the failed drug test was a results of a combining an over-the-counter drug and a prescription drug, a possibility that the doctor, Dr. David Black, who runs the NASCAR testing said is not plausible.
But what bothers Dr. Charles Yesalis, a Penn State professor who testified in front of Congress on performance-enhancing drugs, who also spent 25 years researching drug testing, is that the drivers are not provided a list of the banned substances. All other professional sports, NBA, NFL, MLB, NCAA, and the PGA , all provide a list of substances that are banned by the governing body of that particular sport. Dr. Yesalis doesn’t disagree with the findings of the test. He, too, has never found a problem with Claritin D and positive drug tests!
Dr. Yesalis does state that , for legal reasons, NASCAR does need to be more up front on what they are looking for in their drug tests. (espn)
COMMENTARY:
It appears that the only recourse that Jeremy Mayfield has is to sue NASCAR, if he really is innocent of the accused drug violation. That is because his offense is non appealable by the agreement that the drivers signed with NASCAR.
The flap with Mayfield’s drug test failure has opened up a very sensitive, and undoubtedly a hotly debated issue! What is your take on this subject?