vif~ EP r~DEDYVW1 2r~99?G In AD. 394, the emperor of Greece issued a decreo prohibiting the celebration of the Olympic Games. Thus ended 1,280 years of tradition, in 320 Olympiads. Over thýat time, athletes gathered every four years in competition. In the modemn era, (begun in 1896), only 22 Olympic competitions have been held. (The 24th Olympiad was completed in Seoul, but two sessions, 1940 and 1944 have been caricelled due te prior commitmentsi.) But, alas, time may now bo for a decree te prohibit once more the games. The ancient gaines ended after years of decline and degradation. Three factors have been cited: society had changed and the ideals of youth and athletics give way te study and learming; wars and invasions changed the ideals of the games, often pitting slaves against animaIs; and early Chrisianity quickly became a dominant force, with the ascetic ida that the body, as a prison of the soul, should ho punishod to allow dliverance-through death. But consider, if you will, that record: 1,280 yoars. After following testimony ini recent weeks from tho Dubin inquiry, who could doubt that the Olympic ideal bas been far more thoroughly corrupted in 93 years than the ancient gaines were in 1,280? Think on these revelations: A world record holder admits ho took performance-enhancing drugs for seven years before hie got caught at the 1988 Olympics and was disqualified; Large numbers of athletes froin virtually every country feel cheating to, be necessary even te be among the elite; Athietes take poisons and growth hormones te improve the body nature had provided. It is asorry state. Since 1920 in Antwerp, the motte of the modemn Dump study to cost -$1.4 ni iion It is gong to cost Durham Egin$ .4-million to prepare an Evroninental Protection Act study for the proposed dumpste adjacent to Whitevale, in Pieker- ['he study is reuied to et aproa for the dm fr om trhe Province. Phase one, at a cost of $100,000, will involve drilling to conflrm the site is suitable for a durnp If thie site is suitable, council will spend $1.25-million to pre- pare the necessary documents, expected to take six months. 'e final $100,000 will be used for a public hearing in January next year. If phase one shows the site is not suitable, council would cancel phases two and three. When phase one 18 completed, a public hearing bas been sche- duled for the end of June to inform the public of the drilling resuits. Council bas hired M.M. Dillion Ltd. to conduct the study. In May, counicil approved the dump site after a number of hostile pblic metings with resi- dents of the Witevale area. The dump is to operate from 1992 to 1996 and have a capacity of 6 million tonnes. The dump is Durham's pro- posaI under the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) plan which would see the municipalities involved - Durham, Metro. Peel, York and ilarton - propose a similar dump site. Durhamn bas, however, offered to share its dump with Metro. WITH OUR FEET UP by Bill Swan Unworkable games has been Citius, Altius, Fortius (Faster, Hligher, Stronger). The unstated assumption that goos along with it: at any cost. Lest in this madness lies more noble sentiment, still prominently displayed but believed only by the naive: 'The most important thing in the Olympic Ganies is not te win but te, take part, just as the most important thing in life ia not the triumph but the struggîe. The essential thing la not te have conquered but te have fought well." Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern gaines, enunciated this motte at the Gaines in 1908. A lofty ideal, sure, but modemn evidence shows we pay such sentiments only ceremonial service. Compare this te, the message coming from the Dubin inquiry. Cheating has become acceptable in the Nowc Country inthe, City I . -lv 507 Brock Street, North, Whitby 668-4231 (3 blocks north of Hwy. 2) Hours: Mon. - Wed. 10-6, Thurs. & Fri. 10-9, Saturday 10-5:30 Also in Missisauga 'IONEER minds of many athletes (and coaches and trainers) as long as you don't get caught. Faster, Hligher, Stronger comes no longer from dedication, discipline and training, but from dedication, training and chemicals. Modemn science allows coaches to flirt with the unthinkable: remaking athletes te specifications. Need more fast-twitch muscle fibre for strengthi and power? Try a few growth hormones, coupled with your training. Let's fool mother nature. Need more endurance? Try blood doping. Be a good, red-blooded athlete and don ate a pint or so of blood. Then, a month before your competition, have your doctor transfuse that blood back inte your system. Works wonders in endurance events like bicycle tours and marathons. Botter yet, unlike steroid and other chemical use, blood doping romains virtually undetectablo. (You've used only your own blood, so no roject mechanisins follow.) Need that extra edge? Tr'y strychnine (rat poison te most of us). But be careful with the dosage: Dorando Pietri of Italy may have used it as early as 1908 in the marathon. H-is victery didn't stand: ho was disqualiflod -- not for use of cheniicals but because hoe bocame disorionted in the stadium and flnally collapsed. Docters revived hMm on the track and he thon crossed the finish lino with somne aid. Dr. Robert Kerr of California told the Dubin inquiry on Monday that athletes stili, use strychnine, or almoot anything olse flhat can givo somo advantage, regardfless of the dangers. For that reason, the Olympics should now be disbanded as unworkablo in modemn society. The only other option would bo te throw up our hands and givo up te battlo te, contain drug use, and SEE PAGE 9 I n Sale!l Elegance INT RIORS our past part of your future. «M