In Depth Feature: Tom Sietas and His Anti-Doping Challenge
Posted By Peter Scott on 27 September 2004
Dr. Fitz-Clarke believes that work should be done to adapt current international anti-doping policy to the sport of freediving because these cases will likely happen again in the future.
“I certainly have some issues with the appropriateness of the WADA anti-doping regulations as applied to free diving (they are really meant for exertional sports that involve high activity, essentially the opposite of free diving),” he says, “but a beta-blocker is one drug that definitely should not be used by freedivers, since it could certainly give an unfair advantage, even if it is small.”
“The best advice is to take nothing in the way of medication (unless medically approved), and guard your food and drink carefully around competitions.”
From Seven Minute Man to Nine Minute Man in Only One Year?
Have you ever thought that the way in which you practice for static apnea is not the best way? Have you ever considered that someone might find a training method that blows you out of the water?
Currently, the general wisdom endorsed in many freediving courses and by world famous freedivers is that we should use warm ups to gradually build up to a maximum breathhold through repeated cycles of “breathe-up” (in most cases this is hyperventilation). From what I’ve seen at the recent Worlds in Vancouver and at many other competitions is that most freedivers use several warm-up statics of increasing length before going for their maximum.
Now if a freediver who happens to have a radically different method of training and preparation for static apnea comes along, one that doesn’t use any warm-ups in his preparation, then there is bound to be doubt and skepticism. This skepticism is understandable, given that not many people can achieve a maximum performance on their first try. But then again, not many people make this the goal of their training.
Now combine that original skepticism with the news of a positive test for metoprolol, and you might think that’s enough circumstantial evidence for cheating. But consider the following:
Tom Sietas used to train like most people do: static apnea once or twice a week, maybe dynamic once in a while for fun, and also general fitness training. He told me that he changed his training approach starting with the 2003 German Championships in Austria.
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