This year’s Winter Olympics had an unexpected turn of events when news of 15-year-old figure skater Kamila Valieva’s failed doping test from December. 2021 came to light. 

Athletes face a lot of pressures from coaches and spectators. When winning is emphasized more than competing the best you can, coaches and athletes take measures in their own hands to secure a win.

Taking performance-enhancing drugs should not be the route to take in order to win. Cheating to win is worse than getting last place. 

While Valieva is a minor and might not have known about the drugs she consumed, it is likely her coaches and the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) knew. In fact, after the 2018 Winter Olympics, the World Anti-Doping Agency barred Russia from international sports competitions for four years, but the sentence was reduced to two years, according to the New York Times. 

It’s safe to say that Russia has not learned their lesson due to a lack of harsh consequences. 

Despite the ban, Russia was still able to compete in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics under the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC), which to me seems pointless. How will countries and sport organizations learn if they do not face consequences for their actions? 

Many argue that some athletes don’t know that they are using performance-enhancing drugs and the national sports organizations are to blame, so the athletes shouldn’t be punished. However, punishing organizations for doping is more effective if you punish the entire organization, including the athletes rather than just the masterminds. 

Despite the sport, spectators around the world look up to Olympic athletes as role models. Athletes should set a good example for the younger generation and not endorse taking drugs to win.