Bremerton’s
Tara Kirk was part of a panel last month that tackled the
ethical issues surrounding the debate on performance-enhancing
drugs in athletics at Stanford University. The program was titled
“Doping in Sports: The State of Play.”
Kirk, who won a silver medal in the 2004 Olympic Games, described
what it feels like when you’re the one under investigation. Kirk
was accused of doping four years ago, but her name was eventually
cleared. During the forum, she held up a booklet containing the
results that showed she tested negative for performance-enhancing
drugs.
“It’s easy to accuse someone,” Kirk said, adding that once an
athlete’s name is smeared, “no one reads the retraction.”
Kirk also stressed that athletes can excel without steroids.
The program was co-sponsored by the Department of Athletics and the
Barbara and Bowen McCoy Program in Ethics in Society. Other
panelists were Carl Djerassi, professor emeritus of chemistry;
David Shaw, offensive coordinator for Stanford’s football team; Dan
Pfaff, who has coached more than 30 Olympic track-and-field
athletes; and Bay Area investigative journalist Lance Williams, who
has written extensively about the allegations of steroid use by
Barry Bonds and other athletes for the San Francisco Chronicle and
his 2006 book, Game of Shadows.
Kirk and her sister, Dana, another Stanford grad, hope to compete
in this summer’s Beijing Olympics. Both competed in this weekend’s
Missouri Grand Prix in Columbia, Mo. Tara placed third in the 200
breaststroke Sunday, and won the 100 breaststroke Monday. Dana was
fifth in the 200 butterfly and third in the 100 fly Monday.
Another doping note: Tara said she was selected for random, out of
competition drug tests three different times last week.
If you’d like to check out Tara’s blog, go to
http://wcsnblogs.com/tarakirk
