Pubdate: Sat, 29 Jan 2005
Source: Day, The (CT)
Copyright: 2005 The Day Publishing Co.
Contact:  http://www.theday.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/293
Author: Nancy Armour

U.S. CURLER SUSPENDED FOR REFUSING TO TAKE DRUG TEST

Curling has officially hit the big time in Olympic
sports.

The curlers don't have a fat TV contract yet, and Nike isn't trotting
out ads featuring them and their brooms. But seven years after making
its debut as a medal sport at the Nagano Olympics, curling has what's
become a rite of passage these days: its first doping violation.

Now put the stones and brooms down, it's not quite what it sounds.
Mitchell Marks, a promising young curler, was suspended for two years
because he refused to take an out-of-competition drug test in October,
an automatic violation.

But his suspension has caused quite the stir because it's believed to
be the first in the sport's history and he's, well, a curler.

"I really can't believe it's gotten this much attention," Marks said.
"Knowing all the stuff going on now, I probably would take it if they
knocked on my door because of all the negative publicity on my name."

Curling may be mocked as shuffleboard on ice or the X Games' answer to
housecleaning, with athletes who look more like the next-door neighbor
than a finely-honed physical specimen. But it takes cunning and skill.
Teams start by sliding a 42-pound stone down a sheet of ice toward a
circular target about 93 feet away. Two members of the four-person
team escort the stone, vigorously brushing the ice to melt the top
layer and reduce friction so the stone travels straighter and further.

The rest of the game is spent trying to smack the opponent's stones
out of the target area while trying to prevent their own from
suffering a similar, disastrous fate.

"I was in eighth grade when I started. I went to a junior open house,
got to throw a few stones, and loved it ever since," said Marks, now
22. "It's just fun, just the psychology of the game."

Which is what made his suspension so stunning.

"Curling's not a big-time professional sport where drugs are an issue,
and they're not an issue with Mitchell," said Craig Brown, a top U.S.
curler and one of Marks' teammates last season.

Brown and Marks' team advanced to the semifinals of the national
championships last season, putting them in the pool of athletes
eligible for testing by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. On Oct. 30, Marks
was selected for an out-of-competition test.

The automatic penalty for refusing to take such a test is a two-year
suspension, and Marks was well aware of it.

"The rules are very clear," said Travis Tygart, USADA's general
counsel. "When you're in the out-of-competition testing pool, you have
obligation to update us with your information. If you're not competing
at that level, you have to send in formal written notice of
retirement."

Marks didn't compete this season because he was finishing his
sociology degree at the University of Wisconsin. He knew he wouldn't
be competing next year, either, because USA Curling is picking the
team for the Turin Olympics next month. The only problem was he'd
never notified USADA, so the agency said he had to take the test.

After weighing his options, Marks decided he wasn't going to bother.
He refused the test, and was suspended.

"I didn't really like the whole process," he said. "I guess if you
want to play their game, you have to play by their rules. But I'm not
playing their game."

Doping violations by any athlete are big news these days - as Marks
soon discovered. Friends read about him in papers across the country.
One heard someone on the radio talking about it. It was a topic for
discussion in a curling chat room.

Marks insists he had no reason other than principle to refuse the
test. He's not taking any kind of drugs, he said, pointing to his
recent application to the Madison Police Department.

"Obviously I wouldn't be doing (drugs) if I'm applying for that job,"
he said. "I really can't change some people's minds. People are going
to think what they want to think, regardless of what you tell them."

But rules are rules. The Olympic movement can't make exceptions in its
pursuit of drug cheats, no matter how frivolous the offense might seem.

"The lesson learned from it all?" Marks said. "I guess take the test
when they come knock on my door." 
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MAP posted-by: SHeath(DPFFLorida)