The dark side of Sportsmen

Lance Armstrong

Be it Science or be it fiction, be it movies or be it politics: every sphere of life has a dark side to it. From the dangerous, life threatening inventions to the dirty minded, life-sucking politicians to the animated, always-powerful-than-hero villains: as one side of the coin, their mere existence is inevitable. While the dark force resides in every one of us, it is the being himself who decides on which side he should endure his journey. Why would anyone wish to embrace the evil in them anyway? Greed, revenge, Hatred, Jealousy, Win-over –the –world ambitions, you name it. It’s is no different in the world of sports.

Every sport is built on a drive to improve, to excel, the chance to compete against your peers, and the opportunity to build strong bonds with others. For many, sports are the building block for life. Integrity; sportsmanship; pride: If there are three words that make up the foundation of the sporting world, these three would most certainly be at the top of the list.

But for all those that grow and mature through sports, there are those that take the game a little too seriously. To those few the difference between winning and losing is not an option. So instead of trying harder and training longer, they cheat. And when a cheater gets going and succeeds in pulling on over on the competition, chances are good he’ll do it again.

And again. And again.

But for every miscreant there comes a day when he will be brought down. For every cheat there comes a day when their lies come back to bite them. For some that day came maybe a little later than we would have liked, but in the end they all got what they deserved. This article was inspired by one such athlete who pulled up one of the intriguing suspense plays of all time.

Not very strong, Mr. Armstrong

Lance Armstrong, seven time Tour de France winner, a cancer survivor, an inspiration, a hero to millions of sports lovers and cancer sufferers all over the world has become the poster child of what has been considered one of the most elaborate and sophisticated doping schemes in cycling’s history. It is hard to believe how he pulled up the dirty work for such a long time but some optimists believed that he had something fishy going on behind the track. After years of tests and investigations Armstrong himself confessed of using banned performance enhancing drugs. It is quite amazing how he pulled this off for such so long.

Thanks to his treachery and confession to the crime, concerned people have started to look into the matter more seriously. More recently, the Australian Crime Commission (ACC) released the results of a 12 month investigation into the sporting world of Australia where they revealed numerous athletes and other sporting celebrities have been taking part in sophisticated doping plans. Along with this doping, the ACC have also allegedly found evidence of numerous sports codes throughout Australia being involved with certain organized crime syndicates.

And what did he get finally? He was stripped of his seven Le Tour de France victories and handed a lifetime ban from the sport. Period.

Argentina’s Diego Maradona scores his side’s first goal past English goalkeeper Peter Shilton by using his hand, Maradona later claimed that the goal was scored by “The Hand Of God”

Hand of MarGodona

Although not exactly fitting into this category, but Diego Maradona’s ‘Hand of God’ is easily one of the most famous plays in sports history. Maradona’s goal came six minutes into the second half of the 1986 World Cup quarter-final between England and Argentina. Maradona punched the ball into the goal with his left hand, and referee Ali Bin Nasser allowed it, not having seen the penalty.

After the game and the 2-1 Argentinian victory came Maradona’s famous quote claiming that the goal was scored “un poco con la cabeza de Maradona y otro poco con la mano de Dios” (a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God). The goal was actually scored mostly with the hand of Maradona. Argentina would go on to win the 1986 World Cup, only increasing the significance of the wrongly allowed goal.

Although considered one of the greatest in the sports history, his heinous act to glory is a living example of what and how far anyone can go to win.

Panama Lewis

Lewis, the Death Ring Master

One such individual who took one step further to attain glory was Panama Lewis who might be the most despicable character in boxing’s history, which is saying something about a sport that has produced some truly disquieting individuals.

The lowest point of Lewis’ career was the 1983 fight between Lewis Resto and Billy Collins Jr. in which Lewis removed most of the padding from Resto’s boxing gloves. He also soaked the tape that went on Resto’s hands in plaster of Paris, meaning Resto was basically beating Collins Jr. with a plaster cast for ten rounds. Collins Jr.’s vision was blurred after the fight, leading to depression and a death nine months later in a car accident that some believed to be a suicide. There are photos of how he looked like after the fight over the internet, but I felt it’s too bold to be put up here.

Lewis eventually spent a year in prison for fixing the fight, but went on to train boxers overseas.

Just few who I could put to paper, there are others out there who have rendered similar or even worse deeds in their sporting careers. Their drive to win was insatiable; but their will to win far outweighed their respect for the sport and those who played. In the end they found a place a special place in the annals of history — it’s just too bad it wasn’t the place they were hoping for.