Bolt and Phelps: Not The Only Athletes Blowing More Than The Competition Out

Today it was reported that the current “world’s fastest man” and three-time Olympic medalist, Usain Bolt, told German reporters: “When you're a child in Jamaica, you learn how to roll a joint.”

A statement today clarified: “Although admitting to trying marijuana as a child, (Bolt) has never used it as a competitor.

“Nobody in my family or those close to me smoke, and I don't hang out with people who smoke," the 22-year-old Olympic hero added.

This story is interesting, because only a few months back there was another Olympic hero, one with a huge reputation in America, Michael Phelps, pictured smoking a marijuana pipe—“ripping the bong.”

There was a certain backlash against Phelps, and the leaked picture had many commentators questioning whether he is a role model, or just an ordinary college-aged kid that enjoys partying like everyone else.

Phelps did not lose any medals or sponsorships, and apologized for the photo over and over again in a media circus.

However, unlike Phelps, the American media cares less about Bolt, but why?

First of all, Phelps is an American hero, and won an Olympic record eight Gold medals in the 2008 Beijing games.

Not only is Bolt foreign, he is Jamaican, and his comments enforced stereotypes we hold of the Jamaican people.

Our media portrays Jamaicans as a nation of Bob Marleys; Rastafarian, dreadlock-sporting, easy-going pot heads, like Sanka in Cool Runnings.

Also, the picture of Phelps smoking was recent, coming out soon after Beijing, whereas Bolt denied being a marijuana user after realizing his comments could have been misinterpreted.

This is not the first instance of professional athletes getting found with marijuana, indeed many have been caught “green-handed.”

In a recent article from Forbes Magazine, many athletes were interviewed, including former Super Bowl Champion Mark Stepnoski, who said: “I'd rather smoke than take painkillers.”

Certainly, there have been many athletes that have been caught with marijuana including Michael Vick, Ricky Williams, and Carmelo Anthony.

In 1998, Pro snowboarder Ross Rebagliati had an Olympic medal taken away temporarily due to a failed urine test that came up positive for marijuana.

In the article, former NBA great Charles Oakley stated that, “over half of NBA players smoke pot before each game.” 

The NBA is comprised of mainly young athletes, and according to Spliffs: A Celebration of Cannabis Culture contributor Howard Marks: “I was truly astonished to discover that its (Mr.Nice) unexpected best-seller status was primarily due to its popularity among young people…I had no idea of the extraordinary extent of cannabis use by young people today.”

We, as the American public take Bolt’s admission as a past-user of marijuana as a cultural norm, but are alarmed at other young athletes' use of the drug.

The plain truth is that it is just as much a cultural norm for young American kids, high school and college-aged youths, to use marijuana, if just recreationally, as say a Jamaican youth.

Cannabis culture is popular culture in 2009, as music, movies, TV, and other media are devoted to, or mention the plants use in one way or another.

Hip-hop music, arguably the most popular of all music today, constantly contains lyrics that pertain to selling, growing, or just smoking pot. Groups like Cypress Hill, Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, and The Kottonmouth Kings have made a living by referencing the drug throughout their music.

Likewise, movies such as Harold and Kumar, Half Baked, or recent hit Pineapple Express, are stoner movies to the core, telling about good times between friends and their buds. The characters move throughout the world in a carefree manner, with exciting twists and turns after every joint.

Basically, as marijuana is still illegal through a prolonged prohibition, the youth of America find it as a way to rebel against a law they disagree with, and not have to risk too much at the same time.

While marijuana is illegal, along with other hard drugs heroin and cocaine, possession charges are usually lax, composing of a fine, or possibly a short jail-stay.

If many of their friends are doing it, why is it so hard for us to believe these athletes are “smoking the ganj?”

In all, while marijuana is not in reality as harmful as drugs like heroin or cocaine, it can damage the user’s lungs, decreasing their capacity, and reducing their stamina.

Marijuana should be looked at in a realistic light, it is not a performance enhancing substance, but a performance inhibiting one.

Smoking a joint will not make a player run better, but worse, for less time, and will make their reaction speeds slower.

The professional leagues of the US should institute a system similar to the IOC, make it a banned substance while the athletes are playing, but not in the offseason.

Overall, the media, American public, and more importantly, US congressmen, need to open their eyes to the rampant use of a “soft” drug that will not fade.

When they do, and actually perform tests and studies, and gather information, the US will be forced to legalize a simple plant, who's uses are many, as it grows immensely in popularity, among celebrities and everyday people alike.