February 17 2007

DICK POUND TELLS US HE'S GOING TO STEP ASIDE AS HEAD OF THE WORLD ANTI DOPING AGENCY AT THE END OF THE YEAR. THAT MAY BE THE SOUND OF THOUSANDS CHEERING YOU HEAR; ESPECIALLY IN THE UNITED STATES WHERE POUND HAS BECOME A PARIAH. HOWEVER AS WE'VE LEARNED THE U.S. OLYMPIC COMMITTEE AND THE U.S.

TRACK AND FIELD FEDERATION HAVE ACTED AS STEROID FACILITATORS, MAKING THEIR RECORD AS DIRTY AS THAT OF THE SOVIETS AND EAST GERMANS. POUND HAS BEEN A ZEOLOT. YOU MAKE ENEMIES WHEN YOU TELL PEOPLE WHAT THEY DON'T WANT TO HEAR OR YOU CATCH THEM CHEATING.

FOR INSTANCE, POUND RAISED THE HACKLES OF THE NHL WHEN HE TOLD GARY BETTMAN THAT THEIR DRUG POLICY "LOOKED LIKE THEY FOUND AN EARLY COPY OF THE NOW-DISGRACED BASEBALL POLICY ON THE FLOOR SOMEWHERE." BETTMAN ROSE UP AND SAID "POUND DOESN'T KNOW WHAT HE'S TALKING ABOUT." I THINK IT'S VERY SAFE TO SAY DICK POUND KNOWS MORE ABOUT THE MAKING OF ATHLETES INTO MUTANTS THAN GARY BETTMAN DOES.

MUCH OF THE TIME POUND SHOT-FROM-THE-HIP WITHOUT BENEFIT OF DEFENSE. BUT FOR WHATEVER CRITICISMS----- CONSIDER WHAT HAS HAPPENED SINCE WADA WAS FORMED 8 YEARS AGO. WITHIN 4 YEARS THE WADA CODE HAD BEEN ADOPTED BY ALL OLYMPIC SPORTS. YESTERDAY IN ATHENS "UNESCO" ADOPED THE WADA CODE UNANIMOUSLY SOMETHING POUND CALLED A "MIRACLE".. "MIRACLE" MAY BE AN UNDERSTATEMENT.

IN ONLY EIGHT YEARS THE WORLD ANTI DOPING AGENCY HAS GONE FROM AN IDEA TO A MAJOR FORCE IN SPORTS ON THE PLANET. POUND ALWAYS SAID..."IF YOU WANT TO CONFRONT SOMETHING YOU HAVE TO BE CONFRONTATIONAL". AND NEVER EVER APOLOGIZE. HE ALSO SAID YESTERDAY, IN DECEMBER "MY SENTENCE WILL BE SERVED". AMEN TO THAT.