Reply To: Ingebrigtsen – The Machine

[PhilAnders]

Doping tests usually involve the provision of a biological sample ( saliva, blood, urine, hair) which is then analysed by a combination of infra red spectrometry and gas chromatography. The technique is incredibly sensitive and can detect nanograms of a substance in the sample. However, detection alone is not the issue, in sport, deciding at what dose a substance produces a positive performance effect is! This is relatively easy when the substance is not natural to the body for example Cocaine, more difficult when the substance is produced by the body,for example Testosterone.
There are a number of ways one can steal a performance advantage within the rules of the sport and to spin this thread back to football and Scunthorpe United in his post match interviews, AB has often alluded to managing the players post match recovery. In this modern age, this does not include finding a pub to stop at on the way back from an away game. The Fitness and Conditioning boys are heavily into this with each player having an individual rehydration, refuelling ( diet and nutrition) and rest plan. In addition to post match stretching and warm down this may extend whole body ice bath, massage, infra red mats, pulsed electromagnetic field pads etc. At our level, this is undoubtedly an advantage and as an exercise, I will go away and check how many NlN clubs have a FT Fitness and Conditioning set up. To show the importance attached to this, although we are in the Rugby close season, the English team is in turmoil because 3 of its highly rated team of 4F&C coaches have resigned! Don’t expect any fireworks from England Rugby this year!