"Destroyed" - Peter F. Martin  

 

Summary:  

 

     In the piece titled "Destroyed" the author Peter F. Martin takes a look at the controversy surrounding the accusations of players doping in professional sports. He questions why anabolic steroid use is considered cheating in the eyes of the public and whether we should look at these "dopers" as people deserving of our anger or as victims of a habitual and, more importantly to him, dangerous drug. In Martin's eyes the fans feel cheated by doping athletes because they flaunt the very principles and purity of sports, the principles that stretch back to Ancient Greece. However, he argues that athletes shouldn't be seen as necessarily evil people, as those that dope will suffer consequences worse than mere scorn as they put their very lives in jeopardy in using steroids.

Paraphrase:

 

     Steroids and other performance enhancing drugs are dangerous, not only to the sports that are marred by cheaters who break the spirit of competition, but to the cheaters themselves who threaten their own health. People forget that it is not only the sport that is damaged, but the players as well (Martin 582).

Quote:

 

     What perhaps struck me the most was when Martin asserts at the end of paragraph 9 that "It is the players, much more than the games, that we must protect." (Martin 582). People get so caught up in bemoaning how the sanctity of the sports are ruined by cheaters that they also forget that these cheaters are human beings just like them, people who have made mistakes in their lives that have led them down the path of risking their very lives in order to improve their performance in a game that is there for the enjoyment of everybody, players and fans alike.