Pubdate: Sat, 25 Jul 2015 Source: Columbus Dispatch (OH) Copyright: 2015 The Columbus Dispatch Contact: http://www.dispatch.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/93 Author: Curtis Skinner, Reuters Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Testing) VIDEO-GAMERS WILL BE TESTED FOR DRUGS A competitive video-gaming organization will begin testing players for performance-enhancing drugs next month, as the field of so-called eSports moves further into the mainstream and prize pools climb. The announcement by the Electronic Sports League came just weeks after one gamer admitted to using the stimulant Adderall at a tournament, sparking discussion around an issue that has long plagued traditional sports. The ESL said in a statement on Thursday it would start administering randomized skin tests for the drugs at its ESL One Cologne event in Germany in August, a tournament for the first-person shooting game Counter-Strike: Global Offensive that boasts a $250,000 prize pool. The ESL said it will partner with the World Anti-Doping Agency and Germany's antidoping agency to develop a policy on the issue. It aims to perform tests at all of its major events. "The growing visibility and popularity of eSports, as well as increasing prize pools make it not only more tempting for teams and players to break the rules, but also more damaging to our sport as a whole when they do," the ESL said in a statement. Earlier this month, Kory Friesen, who now plays for the team Nihilum Gaming, spoke about his performance with a former team at a recent $250,000 tournament. In a video interview with another gamer, Friesen said the "hectic" nature of their communications had been due to his entire five-man team taking the amphetamine Adderall. "I don't even care, we were all on Adderall," he said with a laugh. "Tons of people do it." - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom