Taking A Stance In Sports: If It Is Not Broken, Do Not Fix It In sports, the lives of athletes often revolve around being a ‘great’ competitor. The idea of being ‘great’ often requires athletes to come up with alternative ways to challenge their competition. Ultimately, there is only so much an athlete can do to keep an edge over their competitors. Many athletes will go to extreme lengths to enhance their natural capabilities including: the use of steroid, erythropoietin (EPO), and in this case laser eye surgery (LES). It is not uncommon to see athlete’s morals, beliefs, and integrity quickly vanish when competing in highly competitive sports. The ethical dilemma in this case is the use of LES to enhance athletes’ eyesight to greater than …show more content…
After receiving LES, the details would not need to remain a secret in order for it to work even after the athlete has received the treatment. “Treatment” is defined as, the use of medical care given to an individual for an illness or injury. On the other hand, “enhancement” is considered temporarily or permanently altering one’s body capabilities to go beyond its natural limits. Based on my research, usually the quality of an individual’s vision is “defined by 20/20 acuity” (Holladay, 2006, p. 2). This means that you can see from a distance of 20 feet, which is considered normal eyesight. This information should be displayed publically because it will promote LES for athletes with less than 20/20 vision. This way, they general public will have better knowledge about LES and the access that they have to this treatment. I believe that LES can withstand public scrutiny because normal vision is 20/20 and it does not give athletes a vast advantage over others because that would be cheating. It is beneficial since it provides an opportunity for individuals with vision impairments to improve their overall eyesight. It also provides an alternative to wearing contact lenses, which can dry out the eyes, or wearing eyeglasses while competing (Telles-Langdon, 2016). However, we often …show more content…
LES will not affect sport if it becomes commonplace because the average human population has 20/20 quality vision. According to Conway and Gawronski (2013, p. 218), “deontological judgments are driven by emotional processes” which correspond with one of the reasons athletes cannot use LES to obtain vision greater than 20/20. When athletes’ competes, they express so much natural emotions through competition. If athletes were to exceed 20/20 vision, I think the spirit of the sport will not be the same. Someone who wins a competition with illegally enhanced eyesight is not seen as an authentic competitor in the world of sport. Only someone who wins without illegal surgical enhancement can earn the satisfaction that comes with the success. It would be equivalent to a 100- meter sprinter in track and field winning a gold medal at the Summer Olympics and celebrating as if it was due to his or her natural capabilities, to later find out that they were on steroids. This is the reason for rules; it regulates practices that are considered unacceptable. This supports my idea that surgically enhancing one’s vision beyond 20/20 for athletic advantage is
Optometrists have accepted vision therapy, which is a medical treatment for optical muscle disabilities, as a feasible treatment used for eye related problems; claiming the treatment can strengthen vision and give the patient the opportunity to understand visuals quicker and clearer (Press). Vision therapy originated in the 1950s and over the past 25 years, has gained popularity, mainly because of new technological innovations in the field of treatment. Generally, vision therapy is prescribed as a measure mainly for people between the ages of 3 and 18. With the results from a comprehensive series of eye tests, the optometrist can work with the patient using special instruments—prisms, filters, occluders, and eye lenses—and strengthen the eye muscles, thus improving sight. According to optometrists in favor of vision therapy, these methods of treatment using these instruments function as safer routes to repair eye disabilities. Although vision therapy can yield favorable results, the practice as a treatment for innate eye disabilities has been in hot debate lately; as it can exceed $8000 and insurance companies do not cover the treatment. For decades, insurance companies have refused to accept vision therapy as a legitimate method for repairing eyesight (Boink). Concomitant with lack of insurance, the cost for a full treatment can exceed $8000, and doctors cannot guarantee a successful outcome. Recently, parents of children with eye related disabilities, such as amblyopia (lazy eye) and strabismus (cross-eye), and doctors have attempted to cooperate with public schools to allow families access to school-funded doctors to practice vision therapy. With a tight budget, most schools cannot afford to supply vision therapy, and a...
Butryn believes, the challenge that is issued is whether an athlete 's ability has a dramatic change in his performance due to technology. I believe that technology should not give an athlete more ability than a regular athlete because at that point it becomes unfair to both competitors. Trivino states, “The sports practiced by athletes who have had organs or mechanical parts implanted and their desire to take part in regular athletic competitions puts sports authorities in an ethical and legal tight spot” (118). Trivino believes Authorities are put into an ethical and legal tight spot because there must be a line drawn. A line that clearly states what is and isn 't allowed to be able to take part in regular athletic competitions. I believe it becomes unfair and too much of an advantage for the athlete to use in competition. According to Trivino, “The cyberization of sport has occupied a role in medical and sport fields in recent years due to the fact that this issue calls into question the very foundations of contemporary sport,
Professional athletes, throughout history, have been exalted for their outstanding abilities and achievements in sports. Unfortunately, many athletes have turned to anabolic steroids in order to give them an edge, a boost their athletic performance. Starting with the 1954 World Weightlifting Championships, where the Soviets unexpectedly dominated their lifting classes with the use of steroids, it has become increasingly popular among athletes to cheat with the help of this drug. Although the appeal to steroid use is evident when observing how it increases someone’s athletic abilities, many users fail to consider the detrimental side effects of the drug. Also, in my opinion, athletes should be expected to perform based upon their natural abilities, opposed to abilities enhanced by anabolic steroids. Ultimately, anabolic steroids should continue to be illegal in professional sports due to their major health risks and the unfair advantage they serve players.
Sandel explores the immoral nature of genetic enhancements through their potential use in athletics, creating “Bionic Athletes.” The world admires athletes for their expression of great skill in their resp...
Throughout history humans created sporting events to properly measure the talents and effort put forth by our greatest athletes. Unfortunately a recent trend has been a spark for concern within the professional sporting world which can will only lead to more controversy. This trend is the use and attractiveness of performance enhancing drugs, otherwise known as PEDs. PEDs, while just an enhancement to natural talents, is an unwarranted unnatural agent that is eroding the cohesion within the professional sporting world. These athletes who are using PEDs are doing tremendous damage to their ethical and moral integrity, as well as, the sports integrity, at which they are in. They are creating monstrous persona’s which mirrors the actions of Dr. Jekyll form the novel The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. The athlete’s means of becoming the greatest of all time, to reach new heights in their career, or simply to gain a competitive edge, is not justifiable in almost any
Each year athlete’s ability to perform seems to increase by leaps and bounds. Some reasons for this can be attributed to better training methods, better conditioning techniques, and better over all health of the athlete. While most situations involve one or more of the previously scenarios, some athletes always seem to take it to a step further. They engage in a process called blood doping. This procedure does increase physical performance and athletic ability, but potentially may do more harm than good.
Abstract: Since the beginning of sports competition, athletes have always looked for some kind of edge over their competitors. They will do whatever it takes to be one of the elite, and that includes injecting supplements into their bodies to make them bigger, stronger, and faster. Steroid use is probably one of the most common drug misuses in sports competition. Athletes found that with anabolic steroids, one could become a better athlete twice as fast. Not until 1975 was the drug first banned from Olympic competition because of the health risks it produced.
Life revolves around being able to see things. Although individuals who are blind can lead a full and happy life, someone with excellent vision who suddenly loses theirs or notices a decrease in their visual acuity over time may find it difficult to adapt. Thankfully, with the help of an optometrist, individuals can actively work to preserve their vision for as long as possible. Phoenix Eye Care must be a priority for all, as advanced technology allows threats to the eyes to be detected as the earliest stage. The right treatment can help to slow or stop the progression before major issues develop. For this reason, every individual needs to undergo routine eye exams.
Athletes are always searching for ways to enhance their performance. Recently, beginning in the 1950s, that search has included the use of illegal substances like steroids and growth hormones. Illegal substances have been used widely by athletes in hop es of achieving the desired Olympic gold medal or multi-million dollar contract. Some nations, for example the late East Germany in the 1970s and 1980s, have mandated the use of steroids by their athletes. The downside of using those illegal substances is that because they are illegal, getting caught using them can lead to losing that coveted gold medal, a lifetime ban from sports, and a total loss of honor and dignity. This is why the search is now on to find some legal means of enhancing athletic per formance.
Unfortunately, some athletes in the eagerness to reach this goal, end up passing the limit of what is considered ethical. The big problem is that some athletes, due to the lack of orientation, end up being punished and labeled as unethical without even knowing what is happening. As for example accepting to take certain supplements given by their trainer to enhance their performance.
It is amazing what athletes will do to achieve higher levels of performance and to sometimes get the extra edge on the competition. Most of the time people do not realize the long-term effects that result from the decisions they make early in life. This resembles the use of steroids in a person’s life.
06 Jan. 2014. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/9780470510544.ch70/summary>. Haugen, Kjetil K. "Why We Shouldn’t Allow Performance Enhancing Drugs in Sport." Academia.edu. Academia.edu, 1 Apr. 2011.
Sports can help many at- risk youths. In order to participate in sports you need to be committed and willing to work hard. You also have to learn to respect others and accept that winning isn’t the only measure of success. Losing can build character as well. When youth participate in a sports they enjoy, they are less likely to engage in behaviors that are harmful or dangerous to themselves and others. It is for these reasons schools should strive to maintain athletic programs for their students.
Doping is a practice that has been going on since the time of "ancient Greek athletes, who supposedly ate herbs, sesame seeds, dried figs, and mushrooms for this purpose" (Hoberman, 1992, 104). Likewise, athletes have readily consumed such drugs as caffeine and alcohol to improve performa...
The usage of performance-enhancing drugs in sports is commonly known as Doping. Doping is banned worldwide in every sports administration and competitions and doping gives an unfair advantage to those using illegal substances, such as steroids to boost their performance. It also puts at stake the integrity of those athletes who do not use performance-enhancing drugs also known as “clean” athletes. In fact it seems that we’re now entering the era of performance-enhancing drugs within professional sports. Doping rids the true athletes of what they truly deserve and is wrong; because why should those who put in a hundred per cent of their effort, be outshone by individuals who are choosing to use substances to enhance their physical and mental abilities? Doping damages the sports industry as a whole because it has a serious physical and mental effects on the athletes, as well as damaging the idea of sportsmanship and it also breaks the trust of the fans, as they realise their idols are hypocrites.