Neuro-Doping – a Serious Threat to the Integrity of Sport?

AbstractThe formation of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in 1999 was spurred by the 1998 revelation of widespread use in professional cycling of erythropoietin (EPO). The drug was supposedly a real danger. The long-term consequences were unknown, but rumor said it made athletes ’ blood thick as jam with clots and other circulatory fatalities likely consequences. Today the fear of EPO has dampened. However, new scientific avenues such as ‘neuro-doping’ have replaced EPO as emergent and imagined threats to athletes and to the integrity of sport. In this paper, we analy ze the alleged threat from ‘neuro-doping’ in the following steps: First, we outline an understanding of ‘neuro-doping’ in a narrow sense, which we then put into context by looking at the phenomenon in a broader sense. Second, we highlight examples of societal perceptions of sport and science in order to shed light on where the concern for ‘neuro-doping’ comes from. Third, we address the more general fear of technology as a root for this concern. Fourth, we examine the evidence for the performance enhancing capacities of ‘neuro-doping’, where after we look at the obstacles for a ban on this technology. We conclude the analysis by stating that at present ‘neuro-doping’ cannot be considered a threat to the integrity of sport. Finally, however, we put this conclusion into perspective by examining what the most reasonable response would beif in the future neuro-stimulation techniques beco...

Source: Neuroethics - July 28, 2020 Category: Medical Ethics Source Type: research