Another Italian caught in drug dragnet
Tania Ciuciula. Annunziata Martone. Corrado Minervini. What’s with the Italians? Four months after the IAAF announced drug bans for the latter two Italian masters, yet another doping positive and suspension has been disclosed. The April issue of the IAAF News says veteran Luigi Venturelli tested positive for banned substances at the Italian Masters Championships in Fiuggi on June 16, 2002, and will be benched for two years.
Born March 26, 1947, Venturelli ranks among the top throwers in Italy in his M55 age group. He belongs to Sulcis Carbonia, where he is profiled on the Gil Atleti (Our Athletes) page. He’s listed as “Pensionato” — retired. Carbonia is a town at the southwest corner of the island of Sardinia off the western coast of Italy.
This brings to four the number of Italian vets to be punished by the IAAF (with WMA support) in the past couple years. It also brings to at least five the number of masters athletes whose specific offenses in recent years remain an utter mystery. The WMA steadfastly refuses to give even the most basic information on these cases — even though doing so would serve its interests.
For example, did these cases involve mass doses of anabolic steroids? Or were they accidental infractions from ingesting doctor-prescribed medicines?
WMA should publicize such incidents for educational purposes alone. “This is what happens when you don’t know what you’re eating” is one lesson. “Don’t cheat or you’ll get caught” is the other.
But truth be told, the Italians may just be more vigilant than other nations, testing more masters at their nationals than other countries. The United States does NO drug-testing at its nationals, for instance. Drug-testing will be done at the World Masters Athletic Championships this July in Carolina, Puerto Rico, but the number of tests (among 5,000-plus entrants) may again number only a few dozen, if tradition (and costs) hold.
I’m trying valiantly to learn details of the latest “drug positive” — and have written a number of people in position to know whether Venturelli was caught red-handed or was just red-faced in embarrassment over a dumb diet decision.
The masters movement continues to hold its head in the sand when it doesn’t deal with drug issues in a mature and open manner.
