Uncertain Gold

摘要

Every other year, athletes from around the world gather to compete in cities whose names soon become international watchwords. For two weeks or so, the Olympic Games crowd other programming off of television and sweep most other news off the radio. But behind the stories of triple lutzes, broken records, professional rivalries, and personal bests is a separate struggle, rarely discussed during the continuous stream of reporter commentary. Few viewers or listeners realize that the final test of a gold or silver medal may actually lie in the contents of the specimen bottles the three top athletes, plus a few others chosen at random, are required to fill after each competition. During the two weeks of competition, the International Olympic Committee (IOC)-accredited laboratory works around the clock to analyze thousands of urine samples for prohibited drugs. The staff may have only 24 h, from the time the samples are collected to the awards ceremony for that event, to deliver the reports that determine whether the athletes will really receive their medals. At stake are the reputations and careers of the athletes, their coaches, their doctors, and the countries they represent