Arnold Schwarzenegger Condemns Steroid Users in Advance of 2009 Arnold Classic

Feb 27

Arnold Schwarzenegger Condemns Steroid Users in Advance of 2009 Arnold Classic

The California Governor Distances Himself from Steroids but Continues His Unwavering Support of Bodybuilding

Journalists prepare to confront California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger with the “steroid issue” as he prepares for the 21st Annual Arnold Classic bodybuilding contest next month in Columbus. This has become an annual event for the media who are obsessed with attacking Arnold’s association with a sport that has become synonymous with anabolic steroids and performance enhancing drugs.

Arnold Schwarzenegger, recognizing his political vulnerability when standing on stage with top professional bodybuilders, has preemptively re-affirmed his opposition to illegal anabolic steroids in the weeks leading up to one of bodybuilding’s premier contests. Schwarzenegger condemned athletes who make the mistake of using steroids on CNN’s ‘State of the Union with John King’, “I think they need to come out, be clean, and say look, I used that, I made a mistake, or whatever it is and the sports ought to be without drugs”.

Schwarzenegger’s connection to the steroid subculture of bodybuilding has been politically problematic from the moment he announced his political intentions as a California gubernatorial candidate to Jay Leno on the August 6, 2003 episode of The Tonight Show. After all, bodybuilding “by virtually everyone's account is totally saturated, immersed with illegal drug use," according to steroid epidemiologist Charles Yesalis from Penn State University.

Arnold’s previous use of anabolic steroids became a huge liability when the issue of steroids in sports exploded into the national consciousness when federal agents raided the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative (BALCO) less than a month later on September 3, 2003 in Burlingame, California. California voters didn’t care about Arnold’s steroid past and on October 7, 2003 elected him as the Governor of California.

The most affluent and most successful steroid user in history had skillfully managed to deflect criticisms of profiteering from his previous use of anabolic steroids. Many people feel that Schwarzenegger’s use of steroids as a competitive bodybuilder contributed to his dominance of the sport. His bodybuilding success in turn provided a platform from which Arnold launched a widely successful acting career. This opened the door for numerous political opportunities eventually leading to the Governor’s Office in Sacramento. "You have to ask, would Arnold Schwarzenegger be the successful person he is today without using those drugs?" asks Charles Yesalis.

Schwarzenegger has never denied his use of steroids. Arnold publicly admitted using anabolic steroids as a professional bodybuilder as early as 1974 and has never shied away from his steroid past. However, Arnold’s statements regarding anabolic steroids have become increasingly more “anti-steroid” particularly since he began his pursuit of political office.

Schwarzenegger’s statements have gone from being entirely unapologetic about his responsible and safe use of steroids to characterizing his steroid use as stupid experimentation due to ignorance. “It was stupid, because it was in the late ’60s, early ’70s when we didn’t know any better,” Arnold told Larry King during his gubernatorial campaign in 2003. “But then in the late ’70s and in the early ’80s, research was done and you found out that it’s actually damaging, that it causes side effects and it is bad for your health.” Arnold Schwarzenegger’s gubernatorial campaign spokesman Rob Stutzman explained that if Arnold “knew then what we know now, he wouldn’t have done [steroids].”

Arnold Schwarzenegger may have decided that taking an official anti-steroid position was the politically expedient thing to do, but he has never wavered in his support of the sport of bodybuilding. "It's where he came from and he’s proud of it," admits Schwarzenegger’s press secretary Margita Thompson. Schwarzenegger has jumped headfirst into the steroid-fueled media fire-storm every year that the Governor has made an appearance onstage at the Arnold Classic. "Whether it's sports, whether it's business or whether it's politics, I will always be involved in the sport of bodybuilding," promises the bodybuilder, actor, and Governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Sources

“Schwarzenegger: Steroid Use Sends Bad Message,” February 22, 2009

“Return to Bodybuilding Roots Pumps Up the Gov.,” March 5, 2006

“The muscle marketplace - Schwarzenegger raps steroid use, but the Arnold Classic remains a showcase for drug-enhanced 'freak' physiques,” February 20, 2005

“Schwarzenegger linked to contests with steroids - Questions raised over his campaign against use,” October 1, 2003

By Millard Baker

http://www.millardbaker.com

www.SteroidsRx.com