Well-known doping cases in powerlifting

Powerlifting is a sport where the result is measured in kilograms on the bar, and the link between anabolic preparations and strength is direct and well studied. It is no surprise that strength disciplines have for decades remained in a zone of heightened attention from anti-doping organisations. The editorial team examines the most illustrative cases and scenarios that recur year after year, and explains what they teach athletes.

Strength sports and doping: historical context

Anabolic steroids came into sport in the 1950s–1960s, and strength disciplines — weightlifting, throwing, later powerlifting — were among the first to feel their influence. The International Olympic Committee introduced testing for anabolic steroids only in the 1970s, when the preparations had already taken root in training culture.

The most documented historical example is the state doping programme of the GDR. After the reunification of Germany, biologist Werner Franke and former athlete Brigitte Berendonk released archival documents, and in 1997 published an analysis in the journal Clinical Chemistry. It showed the systematic use of androgens, in particular oral Turinabol, in many sports, including strength sports, as well as serious health consequences for athletes, especially women.

Another well-known episode is the 1983 Pan American Games in Caracas, where the introduction of new, more sensitive analytical methods led to a series of positive tests among weightlifters, and some athletes left the competition before the start. This case is often cited as an example of how the improvement of laboratory methods changes athletes' behaviour.

Powerlifting as a separate sport took shape later, in the 1970s. The International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) over time became a signatory to the World Anti-Doping Code and conducts testing under its rules. In parallel there are numerous federations without testing or with limited control, which creates a kind of «dual reality» in the sport.

The Finnish study: the cost to health

One of the most cited works on the consequences of doping in strength sports is the study by Pärssinen and co-authors, published in the International Journal of Sports Medicine in 2000. The authors traced the fate of 62 Finnish powerlifters who took high places at national competitions in 1977–1982 and, in the researchers' assessment, had probably used anabolic agents.

Over 12 years of observation, mortality in the group of powerlifters was 12.9% against 3.1% in a control group of men from the population. Among the causes of death were suicides, myocardial infarction, hepatic coma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The authors noted cautiously that the study design does not allow a causal link to be proven, but the difference was statistically significant.

These results are consistent with later data. The Endocrine Society scientific statement (Pope et al., 2014) systematised the cardiovascular, endocrine and psychiatric consequences of long-term androgen use. Cardiomyopathy, accelerated atherosclerosis and persistent suppression of one's own testosterone synthesis are described as typical of long-term users.

For powerlifting these data are especially important, because in this sport athletes compete for a long time — often into their 40s–50s and beyond in veteran categories. Accordingly, the duration of possible preparation use is also longer than in sports with a short career.

New detection methods and «old» samples

A significant proportion of well-known cases in strength sports over the past fifteen years are linked not to new preparations but to new analytical methods. In 2012, Sobolevsky and Rodchenkov described long-lived metabolites of dehydrochloromethyltestosterone (Turinabol) that can be detected much longer than previous markers. Similar approaches were subsequently developed for stanozolol, metandienone and other oral steroids.

Thanks to such methods, the International Olympic Committee in 2016–2017 re-analysed samples from the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games. Weightlifting turned out to be among the sports with the largest number of detected violations, and dozens of medals were redistributed. Although powerlifting is not an Olympic sport, these events became a signal for all strength disciplines.

For powerlifters this means that even old results are not «closed». The ten-year statute of limitations allows records and titles to be reviewed if new scientific possibilities appear.

At the same time, improved methods have also raised the requirements for caution among honest athletes. When laboratories detect micro-quantities, a contaminated supplement or medicine becomes a real threat to a career.

Typical case scenarios in powerlifting

An analysis of public decisions by anti-doping organisations shows that cases in powerlifting usually fit into a few recurring scenarios. The editorial team deliberately does not discuss individual athletes whose decisions may be under appeal, but describes general patterns.

• Classic anabolic steroids— the most common category; often oral preparations detected by long-lived metabolites.
• Diuretics— used to «cut» weight before the weigh-in in a weight category; always prohibited.
• Stimulants— in competition, often through pre-workout complexes with an opaque composition.
• SARMs and «research» substances— often bought as «legal alternatives», but belong to class S1.
• Refusal to be tested— equated to a positive result and carries the same sanction.
• Whereabouts failures— for top-level athletes included in the registered testing pool.

A separate scenario is veterans and amateurs who believe that at their level testing is impossible. In tested federations this is not so: doping control is conducted both at national championships and among veterans, and the sanctions are the same for everyone.

The situation with medicines also recurs. Athletes who receive, for example, testosterone by medical prescription sometimes do not obtain a therapeutic use exemption. A prescription does not protect against a case, and such an instance is treated as a full-fledged violation, although medical documents may influence the assessment of fault.

Lessons for athletes and coaches

The first lesson: check the rules of your federation. If you compete in a structure with testing under the WADA Code, you are subject to the principle of strict liability — any prohibited substance in a sample is a violation regardless of how it got there.

The second lesson: pre-workout complexes, «testosterone boosters» and weight-loss supplements are the riskiest category of dietary supplements. Choose products with independent certification for the absence of prohibited substances and keep receipts and packaging.

The third lesson: diuretics for cutting weight are not only an anti-doping violation but also a direct threat to health. Electrolyte disturbances can cause arrhythmia. It is better to change weight category than to risk your heart.

The fourth lesson concerns coaches. The Code directly provides for the responsibility of support personnel for the distribution, administration of prohibited substances or complicity. A coach who «advises a cycle» risks a lengthy disqualification and their own reputation.

Editorial conclusions

The history of strength sports is a history of a constant race between pharmacology and control methods. From the GDR to the re-analyses of Olympic samples, laboratories gradually closed the possibilities for hidden use of preparations.

The most important scientific lesson is given by the Finnish study of powerlifters' mortality: the price of doping is measured not only in disqualifications but also in years of life.

For the modern powerlifter the key risks are long-lived metabolites, contaminated supplements, diuretics before the weigh-in and medicines without a therapeutic use exemption.

We also recommend reading our articles on doping in bodybuilding and fitness bikini, on prohibited supplements and on the therapeutic use exemption.

References

1. Pärssinen M, Kujala U, Vartiainen E, Sarna S, Seppälä T. Increased premature mortality of competitive powerlifters suspected to have used anabolic agents. Int J Sports Med. 2000;21(3):225–227.
2. Franke WW, Berendonk B. Hormonal doping and androgenization of athletes: a secret program of the German Democratic Republic government. Clin Chem. 1997;43(7):1262–1279.
3. Sobolevsky T, Rodchenkov G. Detection and mass spectrometric characterization of novel long-term dehydrochloromethyltestosterone metabolites in human urine. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2012;128(3–5):121–127.
4. Pope HG Jr, Wood RI, Rogol A, et al. Adverse health consequences of performance-enhancing drugs: an Endocrine Society scientific statement. Endocr Rev. 2014;35(3):341–375.
5. Schänzer W. Metabolism of anabolic androgenic steroids. Clin Chem. 1996;42(7):1001–1020.
6. World Anti-Doping Agency. World Anti-Doping Code 2021. Montreal: WADA; 2021.
7. World Anti-Doping Agency. The Prohibited List. Montreal: WADA; чинна редакція.