16 years ago when I picked up a barbell in the basement of my home, I had no clue what I was getting into. What's more, I definitely did not think it might lead me from lifting to the coaching place I find myself in now. Back in those early days the concept of a performance-enhancing drug or checking my supplements against a banned substance list was a concept I knew nothing about. It wasn't a concept or idea I ever even had to think about until almost 10 years into my career. Nobody ever walked me through that process and I had no idea who USADA even was. It helped that the likelihood I would ever end up in a position to necessitate a drug test was slim to none.
Fast forward 15 years and the scenery and circumstances are much different. Now we have athletes all over the country who are coached via remote programming and remote video coaching. I see my athletes in person a maximum of five times a year and my involvement in their day-to-day life outside of the gym is almost nothing. I don't see the supplements that go in their protein shaker and I don't get a chance to take a look at the ingredients list of a pre-workout complex. What that force is a really interesting situation.
At this past year's Nationals one of Power and Grace's new weightlifter, CiCi Kyle, qualified and competed for the first time. She did extremely well, we left very proud of her performance and excited for what the future holds. Two months after nationals CiCi and I were informed that her drug test had come back positive. We were both shocked and immediately believed there to be an error. However, after further research we realized that a supplement CiCi had been taking over the counter was on the banned substance list. She was taking a supplement to regulate her monthly cycle. That supplement was DHEA. Prior to coming to weightlifting, CiCi competed in figure competitions and used DHEA as a supplement for this exact purpose. A few weeks out from Nationals, when she saw the need to regulate her cycle in order to not interfere with her Nationals preparation or competition, she began taking the substance again.
As her coach I was unaware that she was taking DHEA and as an athlete CiCi was unaware that it was illegal. In fact, on her USAW drug testing documentation she list DHEA as one of the supplements that she was taking at the time. She literally told them the substance she was taking right next to her protein powder and Ibuprofen. The listing of the substance obviously raised the eyebrows of USADA and inevitably led to the positive test. CiCi has accepted her two year suspension and will serve her time humbly with full knowledge that she broke the rules, despite the circumstances.
As a coach and CiCi has an athlete there are two major lessons to be learned from the situation. First, coaches do not let the banned substance list be an oversight. As a coach who has been in the game now for more than half of my life, I should've known better. I should've reminded my athletes to check anything they take against the list regardless of whether they thought it was approved or not. I should've sat Cici down when I first took her on as an athlete and explained this process to her. The truth of the matter is I was so excited about her talent and her potential that the banned substance list never crossed my mind. Checking my supplements against that list was second nature to me by this point thus it was not my first thought to walk her through that process. Coaches, may my mistake be a lesson to you. I don't care how long you've been coaching or how long you've been competing and I don't care how mature or developed you think your athlete's are, consistently remind them to check their supplements. Furthermore, any new athlete, regardless of age, sit them down and walk them through that process.
The second thing we can all learn from the situation is the obvious. It does not matter how legitimate you think the supplement is or the purpose of the supplement. Check it against the list. It's not worth finding out that it's banned two months after having the best meet of your life. USADA has made that process so easy now that it's ridiculous for us not to check what we're putting in our bodies. Even if you think the supplement is harmless or the purpose of the supplement is not performance-enhancing, check it.
16 years ago I never thought I find myself in this situation as a coach and I can guarantee you that CiCi never thought she'd find herself in this situation as an athlete. Our assumptions and our oversight are the only things to blame. CiCi will continue training hard, drug-free, and Power and Grace will continue to support her recognizing we missed the mark on our end as coaches.