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A swim through: the pharmacopoeia of coping

Tory Shepherd

by Tory Shepherd

26 Feb 05:55am

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Filed under: Alcohol, Drugs, Health, Society, Sport

76 comments

Australia is trying to recuperate from the devastating news that a bunch of 20-something Aussies went to the UK and got pissed. Bloody unAustralian.

Gulp. Pic: AP

Yeah, yeah. Taxpayer funding helped get those swimmers over there.

Yep, binge drinking’s the scourge of society. Of course taking sleeping tablets then knocking on doors instead of sleeping is a flagrant misuse of chemicals.

The as-yet-murkily defined “inappropriate” behaviour could turn out to be a whole other, more serious issue. As is the ‘toxic culture’ of bullying. 

But most of the outrage seems to be reserved for the taking of the Stilnox and the boozing. As big nights out go, I reckon most of us have had larger.

So we all sit in judgement on these swimmers, who may not have shown sufficient remorse in this age of PR driven apologies and endless seeking of forgiveness from the sponsors (oops, I mean people) - but let’s just remember that most of us self medicate to some extent. We’re a nation of swillers and poppers.

Got a problem? There’s a pill for that.

We drink to to fix things. To celebrate or to forget or just to get drunk. We seek blissful blurriness in bottles and in jars. We want something that makes us feel better.

Beleaguered GPs face an endless series of patients demanding they be put to rights with antibiotics. They feel they haven’t been fixed unless they’ve got something in tinfoil.

So doctors, who may be time poor or lazy stressed or under too much pressure to resist, dole out these antibiotics that are so overused we’re at risk from superbugs, resistant bacteria that could herald a return to the pre-antibiotic days when a scratch could be a death sentence.

It’s probably enough to drive them to drink.

Then there’s the worried well demanding their magic pills and potions, they want their every ache and twinge named and treated. They are the heroic battlers under siege, and if there isn’t an illness to fight there’s a pollutant, or there’s sugar, or gluten, or any one of these other things we demonise purely so we can vanquish them and have something to talk about over our biodynamic and organic superfood salads.

If it’s not antibiotics, we want to fix our slothful ways and vegetable-challenged diets and make up for all those salty deep fried chips with multivitamins.

This huge industry with its hodgepodge of vague health promises, hocus pocus and fearmongering (what, you’re depriving your child of all those pills that will make them brighter?) now takes up a multi-coloured swathe of supermarket shelves, groaning with promises of shinier hair, a faster brain, or the abilities of Ricky Ponting.

There are the illegal drugs, from practically harmless pot to the manic evils of ice. The endless imitations you can find online, that slip through the legal loopholes or simply slip through letterboxes unnoticed. There’s cocaine and mock cocaine, ecstasy and fake ecstasy. 

Then there are the legal highs, the Valium, the Xanax, the pain meds and the anti-anxiety treatments. The pharmacopoeia of coping.

And, of course there is booze.

Everyone’s happy to point the finger at these swimmers drinking till they vomit, and to judge Aboriginal communities or Bacardi bingers, while smugly downing their bottles of pinot. It’s a problem elsewhere, not in your life, right?

The swimmers are not backpackers, with no cares or responsibilities, but they’re not Lance Armstrong, either. They’ve disappointed Australia, they’ve hopefully disappointed themselves.

But they’re also a bunch of young people under enormous pressure who are being pilloried for seeking release in the same sort of ways that everyone else does, all the time. 

Let he who is without a penchant for self medication pour the first gin.

Twitter: @ToryShepherd
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    • acotrel says:

      05:16am | 26/02/13

      The elephant in the room is widespread depression, particularly amongst the young.  Most of it comes down to poor life skills and kids who are inadequate. Others have earnt their illnesses through hard work and suffering under sociopaths in the workplace and in the home.

      Reply

    • Gregg says:

      07:20am | 26/02/13

      I doubt depression had to much to do with the lead up to the swimmers performances and could have been a bit afterwards with failure.
      Their life skills are still very much in the development stage and yet you would hardly consider swimmers reaching Olympic competition status as being in adequate as far as swimming itself goes.

      I find pottering around, salvaging stuff, making and growing things good therapy you might want to try, more time in the workshop perhaps than on line or on the mobile!

    • john says:

      09:51am | 26/02/13

      @Gregg “I doubt depression had to much to do with the lead up to the swimmers performances”

      @acotrel “widespread depression, particularly amongst the young”
      Just the young?

      From your point of view, perhaps.

      From my point of view everything is in fail mode -everywhere & the paradoxes are just as astonishing. From global CO2 induced climate failure & toxification yet we contiunue hyper capitalism more than basics necessary & moreagressive than ever, executive greed to GFC, from extreme wealth to extreme poverty - in coutries like Australia & USA, from birth right opportunity to hardships of the average citizen. From drugs or mildly put “performancing enhancing” in every field to where participation for the fun of it is no longer good enough. Where ever you look it just fail.

      How could it not be depressing, unless you choose to wear rose coloured glasses?

      In a free society I suppose there’s nothing wrong with that either, if it helps put your head in the sand.

      Sigmund Freud was probably right, we are a far more a dangerous human animal than what he envisioned, not just to others but to our selves.

      To change your life watch current you tube sensation especially at 2 mins 30 & 4.43

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Lh7Zg8WXwU

    • acotrel says:

      11:50am | 26/02/13

      @John
      If you have a victim’s mindset, you will be a victim.  ‘The system runs on bullshit’ but you don’t have to be part of it.  If you are motivated to change things, you need to find a realistic world view and vision, dig oyur heels in and lead by example. If you are positive and simply step up to the plate and lead, others will follow.  It is only a matter of being positive and motivated towards improving our quality of life. One thing that I havedone personally is to initiate a sporting club in our local community so kids can do motocross - it all helps. Negativity is our enemy. If we go down that path we end up needing the pills.

    • john says:

      02:04pm | 26/02/13

      @acotrel “The system runs on bullshit”

      By your own admission.

      acrotrel, positivity should never be something that has to be sought after or searched for, or space created for some positivety to exist, it should be ‘just is’ be the normal mode even in the face of trying times.

      My previous post is about not lying or misleading one’s self. It is what it is. No sugar coating no glass half full or half empty. Its just is “half a glass” that is it. The negatives have to be exposed dealt with given parameters of their actual existence and scale- not ignored. As you say if the system runs on bullshit, then this priciple is wrong, this very perception is fatally wrong. It fails democracy it fails society, it fails communities because it takes away meaning from life itself and sucks it out to create a vacum only to fill it with something far less desirable. violence/excessive alcohol?drugs?, dictator? war? unemployment?suicides?
      As in my previous post -what we are witnessing is amplification of all these failures,  unless they are corrected or counterbalanced negativety will be amplified further and be far more destructive. Governments can throw money at it but its doomed to fail- money is not the entire answer, purpose is, and a combination of many other factors. e.g of strong purpose set Sept 12 1962

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g25G1M4EXrQ

      Then there are aspects of people {no doubt are many} that Michael Caine sums up nicely, perhaps explains why people actually like the part played by heath ledger.

      The funny thing about the last part is that its not a joke.

      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aM47rdMzZa0

    • Just some guy says:

      02:34pm | 26/02/13

      “Others have earnt their illnesses through hard work and suffering under sociopaths in the workplace and in the home.”

      Gregg and John, this is the clue that it’s all about Alcotrel. He never misses an opportunity to use any flimsy excuse or weak connection to a real story to bleat about the injustices in his life. It’s a wonder he doesn’t stay locked up inside posting incessantly to various forums. Oh, wait…

    • john says:

      03:37pm | 26/02/13

      @Just some guy says:
      “He never misses an opportunity to use any flimsy excuse or weak connection to a real story to bleat about the injustices in his life.”

      Perhaps, Just some guy, perhaps but acotrel did rightly suggest the elephant in the room is widespread depression particularly amongst the young.  If older people lead by example i believe its more widespread amongst all ages and far bigger issue than is currently believed or understood.

    • The Humane Factor says:

      06:45pm | 26/02/13

      No kids are inadequate or borne inadequate, alcotrel.

      To suggest anything different is the height of arrogance and ignorance and shows not the slightest understanding of the problems within society.

      Sorry for any offense, but some things must be challenged.

    • BC says:

      05:49am | 26/02/13

      Practically harmless pot? I’m not so sure about that, and I did smoke a lot of it for some years. I had a friend kill himself who was a big pot head. He was the one who turned me on. He used to say he liked to get stoned and think about things, but of course the conclusions he arrived at were those of a stoned person and therefore flawed. People say it leads to harder drugs. It certainly did in my case. Just my experience.

      Reply

    • Cry in my Gin says:

      08:58am | 26/02/13

      Agree.
      Green Heroin, especially the dutch bred stuff that has a kick like a horse.
      And it is mixed usually with tobacco.
      Had a conversation with a bong pig? Enthralling stuff.
      Am I looking down on bong heads? Yes. Only because I crawled out of the hole and looked back.

    • ManBearPig says:

      11:27am | 26/02/13

      Weed has never killed anyone. Ever. Ofcourse, weed should be perfectly legal, but scaremongering and misinformation will prevent that indefinitely.

      Your friend killing himself says more about your friend than the inanimate dried herb he smoked.

    • SJ says:

      12:02pm | 26/02/13

      Been there, done that and I agree it’s not harmless at all.  Only those who haven’t yet given up think it’s ok.  In retrospect I look back at the effects and see a girlfriend who became paranoid, a mate who went psychotic (literally tried to kill another mate), and for me… my career isn’t what it could have been.

      Think about it.. why would people give up if it was harmless? (Hint most answers you come up with imply some sort of harm / detrimental factor).

    • willie says:

      01:18pm | 26/02/13

      Maybe the author meant when compared to alcohol.

    • John says:

      01:20pm | 26/02/13

      Meanwhile those intoxicated on the legal drug alcohol continue to literally beat each other to death.  Q.  Name 3 place where glassware is not used because the people in that location can’t be trusted with glass.  A.  1.  Prison.  2. Mental Hospital.  3. Pub/Nightclub.  Tells you something about the effects of alcohol on human beings doesnt it.

    • SM says:

      02:10pm | 26/02/13

      As a former long term pot smoker, I assure you that it is far from harmless

    • Jaqui says:

      03:01pm | 26/02/13

      @John: Anyone who can glass another person forgoes the right to call themselves human beings, whether they be under the influence or not.

      Strangely people didn’t seem to glass each other in previous generations, I wonder why that is?

    • Gregg says:

      05:57am | 26/02/13

      Sure, it is all disappointing as you say Tory, just as most Australians were disappointed with swimming performances from the males in particular and I’d judge that perhaps some closer guidance is needed in those situations where you have a largish group of youngish people living on the physical and mental edge.
      Can we really say that it could reasonably be expected for leadership to come from within such a young group?
      Perhaps Sullivan with experience from Beijing or any others with longer time at world competition could have been more to the fore.

      As for
      ” We’re a nation of swillers and poppers.

      Got a problem? There’s a pill for that.

      We drink to to fix things. To celebrate or to forget or just to get drunk. We seek blissful blurriness in bottles and in jars. We want something that makes us feel better.

      Beleaguered GPs face an endless series of patients demanding they be put to rights with antibiotics. They feel they haven’t been fixed unless they’ve got something in tinfoil. “

      If that is how it is, perhaps the nation has a problem!

      Reply

    • acotrel says:

      11:52am | 26/02/13

      When Abbott shoots his negative mouth off, I feel like getting drunk.

    • Pattem says:

      02:07pm | 26/02/13

      @Gregg, I thought men had a reputation for not going to the GP, so is Tory claiming, that all these people who demand their antibiotics from their GPs are, in fact, women?

      You stated: “If that is how it is, perhaps the nation has a problem!”

      At what point does the behaviour of a quantity of individuals become indicative of a nation at large?

    • Andore Jr says:

      06:23am | 26/02/13

      Christ almighty what a whitewash. I bet I could find four fantastic, disciplined, committed young male swimmers who could step up to replace these silver spoon PR managed twits on the starters block, and do it without the need for ‘medication’.

      In one generation we’ve gone from “Just Say No” to “Just Make Sure You Hold A Press Conference Tomorrow”.

      Reply

    • SAm says:

      06:30am | 26/02/13

      So they got drunk at the biggest event of thier lives and were angry at them?

      Reply

    • marley says:

      09:06am | 26/02/13

      They got drunk before/before the biggest event of their lives, underperformed at the biggest event, and then clammed up about misbehaving.  I think, “disappointed” would be a better word than angry. 

      But the cure is an easy one.  Kick them off the team, and let them live their lives out of the spotlight, while we find swimmers with a bit more class to represent us.

    • Morticia says:

      09:36am | 26/02/13

      OMG marley
      Wait till we get the “news” that they had sex before the “biggest event”
      You can be a doubly disappointed dowager.

    • marley says:

      12:29pm | 26/02/13

      @Morticia - I don’t give a damn if they had sex before the games, during the games, in the locker room or in the pool.  I wouldn’t give a damn if they drank themselves into oblivion after their events.

      l don’t care what they get up to as long as it doesn’t affect their or their teammates’ performance on the day.  It did.

      So, I say, follow the “no dickheads” approach and let them find new careers elsewhere.

    • JoniM says:

      02:16pm | 26/02/13

      I couldn’t care less if they wrote themselves off every night, except when we are are financially supporting their athletic careers in the hope of some returned sporting success ! If they are not as committed to performing well as we are to financially supporting them in their chosen sporting pursuits, then get rid of them for someone else who is truly committed !
      Swimmers in particular are the over hyped prima donnas of our Olympic teams due to their relative past gold medal successes in limited fields of competitors (generally white Americans are the chief competition), whilst our battling athletes of track & field & many other sports where full competition exists, are left to flounder, with the occasional “out of the blue” achievement,  whilst the women’s magazine articles and merchandise sponsorships flock to the water frolics !
      So when these over hyped types fail to perform and some lack of committment is identified as to why ! Then they duly cop a gobful from their financial supporters and their patriotic fans .......us !

    • Pattem says:

      02:18pm | 26/02/13

      According to the AFL sex before a match is a natural stimulant!

      Ah, the endorphins…

    • Nathan says:

      06:36am | 26/02/13

      From all accounts allot of team members had problems with the “dream team” so they started to screw with others preparations not just their own. Even i knew at uni not to run around the residence halls being a fool if exams where on the next day. There would be consequences on top of me knowing it was wrong and unfair.

      On top of all that they are professionals and where representing their country on the biggest stage, i think that warrants us to hold them to a greater standard.

      Reply

    • Oi Oi says:

      06:36am | 26/02/13

      What is it with Aussies and their bad behaviour oversees? Years ago in my travels it was the loud mouth tourist yanks who had a bad rap. Now it’s our turn to show the world. If you travel it’s not hard to play “spot the bogan Aussie’ and by the sound of it, Indonesia don’t like our drunk culture.

      Reply

    • fml says:

      08:10am | 26/02/13

      It is true, I have read a few reports on this. It seems to stem yes from alcohol and also from the expectation that we expect the host countries to understand our humor.

      We have continually put our humor on a pedestal without any introspection. It’s one thing to uphold and defend our “cultural humor” here in australia, but it is extremely unreasonable to expect nations overseas to accept it because that is who we are. Our humor can be extremely demeaning, and what we say is taking the mick could be construed as a mortal offense in countries with narrower sensibilities.

    • Tim says:

      06:42am | 26/02/13

      Im still shocked that anyone thinks that this is a big deal in any form.

      Good job media.

      Reply

    • marley says:

      07:55am | 26/02/13

      It’s a big deal because Australia is sports-mad, creates heroes out of its top sportsmen, and devotes a helluva lot of money to their support.  In a country with a lesser sporting culture, people would be saying “James who?” 

      So, if these bozos want the money and fame that comes with the job, they’d better accept the scrutiny and criticism when they screw up or fail.

    • Tim says:

      09:56am | 26/02/13

      Marley,
      I don’t think they screwed up.

    • marley says:

      11:24am | 26/02/13

      @Tim - have you read the Swimming Australia report?  Bullying, not supporting teammates, satisfied with just being at the Olympics and not worrying about winning?  That’s not the stuff dream teams are made of.

      There were huge problems with that team (and, oddly,  not with the men involved in athletics, archery or a dozen other sports).  Yes, they screwed up.

    • Lukew says:

      11:33am | 26/02/13

      Tim, I would agree with you, but don’t you realise it is our egos at stake here?

    • Rose says:

      11:47am | 26/02/13

      They did screw up, they got caught and now they are facing the flak.

    • Zed says:

      01:14pm | 26/02/13

      It’s a big deal because taxpayers handed over millions of dollars to Swimming Australia only to have the supposed top performers re-create their own version of Animal House, rather than do the job they had been paid to do.

    • JoniM says:

      02:28pm | 26/02/13

      Spot on Zed !

      That’s the whole issue !
      Most Aussies respect a battling athlete that is always getting beaten, but is always trying his best ! When you have supposed elite athletics that fail to do their best and in all likliehood its because their preparation was stuffed by non committment to the tasks at hand ( ie getting pissed and carrying on !), then the people who pay for them both financially and fanatically, will not be real pleased !
      Seems that both personal and team leadership was sadly lacking in the swim team group !

    • nks says:

      06:44am | 26/02/13

      What a load of rubbish - this has been such a beat up…....
      Moving on…... what other Australian Sport will be trashed this week?

      Reply

    • Sickemrex says:

      06:58am | 26/02/13

      Sorry Tory but I’m not going to call a spade a metal and wooden implement for digging holes in dirt. They are a bunch of dickheads. If it was a group of amateur country rugby league players, or netballers for that matter, on an end of season trip then fine, no big deal. Would there be outrage if it had been politicians, or police, or teachers representing Australia? You bet it would be. They are (partly) publicly funded elite athletes in what has been historically an honoured sport in this country.

      I completely agree about the antibiotics issue though. Far too many people take them for the “flu” when they reject the idea of flu vaccination through some myth about it “giving” them something.

      And am I having pregnany hormone hallucinations or did I see an ad last night for vitamin tablets for kids that look kind of exactly like lollies? Give them a carrot or an apple FFS.

      Reply

    • iansand says:

      07:28am | 26/02/13

      Bunch of kids who have been told how special they are from an early age.  It is unreasonable to expect them to behave like real people, but it would be good if they could.

      Reply

    • ramases says:

      07:28am | 26/02/13

      So what you are saying in essence is that its okay for the Tax payer to pay for these people who are supposed to be representing Australia to get drunk, take drugs and fail miserably because of that and their inability to separate fact from fiction.
      That’s what I call bullshit, to paraphrase your good self.  These people were chosen to represent their country and as such had an obligation not only to the people of Australia, their coaches,parents and of course their sponsors but themselves and they failed miserably.
        There is no excuse for that in my books. You go on to say that we are a nation of binge drinkers,pill poppers and over medicators but is that just personal experience or have you some kind of statistics to back your claims. I for one don’t use drink to solve a problem, I very rarely go and get medication for an illness as I live a fairly healthy life but you would lump everybody into your own little world of drunks and pill poppers to make a point. Practically harmless pot, that’s open to argument unless of course you happen to have inside knowledge that others don’t or a PHD in Medicine or Pharmacology that you have been keeping quiet or is this just another generalisation to make a sordid point. Your statement that they are not Lance Armstrong seems to be an indication that you approve of their actions as long as it wasn’t over a prolonged period which is crap. Any person who is a representative of a Country has a moral obligation to uphold the trust put in them and any breach, however small must be treated the same as a habitual cheat on drugs, there is no small transgression when it comes to using drugs or alcohol when charged with such responsibility.
        The facts in the case as offered to this point are, these clowns drank, took drugs and behaved in a manner not becoming of representatives of Australian sport and then failed to live up to their own and others expectations, nothing more, nothing less and its my hope that they pay for their indiscretions now as an example to those following behind of what and how not to behave.

      Reply

    • SAm says:

      07:52am | 26/02/13

      I didnt think that we the ‘taxpayer’ would have been paying for their booze. If you go on a business trip and buy yourself a beer is it that you are taking advantage of your company and using it as a lavish excuse to buy a beer for yourself? Didnt think so. That horse of yours is mighty high

    • Steve says:

      08:00am | 26/02/13

      Great article Tory.

      At some point we became a nation of worried, almost fearful people and lost our sense of a) perspective and b) the barrier between what is rightfully private behaviour or what should be a public outrage.

      Reply

    • Mr Sam says:

      08:36am | 26/02/13

      The point about losing perspective is a very valid one. Public perseption is so very fickle.

    • Rose says:

      09:41am | 26/02/13

      It was not ‘private’ behaviour when the boys were taking Stillnox and harassing team mates. They were yet to compete and were disturbing the preparation of themselves as well as other athletes who were at that point trying to prepare. Once they had finished competing, so long as they were not disturbing other athletes, they were free to kick up their heels and party.
      These guys were paid to do a job, swim their very best in the Olympic Games, and they were clearly too busy stuffing around to give it their best shot. It’s not just that they didn’t live up to expectations, they gave the impression that they didn’t really try. Maybe they thought they were so good they didn’t have to, who knows.
      You can make allowances for them and pander to their egos, but we do need to send a message to up and coming swimmers that this kind of behaviour will not be tolerated and that they are not above the rules. These were adult men and they absolutely should have had more respect for themselves, their team mates and their country!!

    • Mr Spam says:

      10:04am | 26/02/13

      Dear Mr. Sam
      Please give us a definition of this new word you have invented “perseption”
      could explain this?
      I Won’t hold my breath for a brilliant answer
      I don’t expect much from your reply if you are brave enough to reply at all

    • Steve says:

      11:58am | 26/02/13

      Rose,

      are you supporting a zero tolerance policy for all behaviour you object to?  It was a sleeping pill !

      And these minor incidents being constantly beaten up by media and arse-covering management into crisis mode, means we really don’t have the energy or perspective to see and react to real issues.

    • fml says:

      12:41pm | 26/02/13

      Sleeping pill?

      Obviously doesn’t work…

    • Mr Sam says:

      12:54pm | 26/02/13

      Dear Mr Spam

      Perseption is like perception with the letter c instead of s.

      Hope this has been educational for you.

    • Mr Spam says:

      01:46pm | 26/02/13

      Dear Mr Sam

      Please inform the Macquarie dictionary immediately of your new word, which you have invented and others have just misspelled.
      And don’t forget to inform your colleagues in the One Nation party so they can make use it as well and bring it into mainstream usage.

      Hope this has been educational for you.

    • Rose says:

      01:46pm | 26/02/13

      Steve, while they are Olympic athletes being paid by the Australian government to do a job then YES, I do have a zero tolerance policy. Stillnox was also specifically prohibited by the management.
      After they completed their events I couldn’t care what they got up to, provided it was legal (they’re still on government $$ while they were there). They could party like there’s no tomorrow if they wanted, but prior to and during competition they absolutely need to be concentrating on what they were there for!

    • Wakey Wakey says:

      08:23am | 26/02/13

      Hey.. drugs built this country.  Who can forget an afternoon of bex and a good lie down. The tradition lives on

      Reply

    • Rose says:

      11:52am | 26/02/13

      Quick question…why was it again that Bex was banned?  Something to do with addiction and causing kidney damage?

    • Null and Void says:

      08:24am | 26/02/13

      Oh man, I wish Valium gave me a high but I just use it for unbearable back spasm. If there was a vegetable or something else I could take for the chronic pain, I’d have that instead. Then I wouldn’t be a zombie for three days after having it. I totally agree that antibiotics are the devil, too. But what else do you do when people’s immune systems are screwed from eating all that processed junk?

      People who are scared of everything just shit me to tears, really. Especially when it comes to germs. You’re better off to lick a desk at work than sanitise it for your immune system. It would be great if we could go back to survival of the fittest, rather than survival of the most drug-addled for humans. We’ve diluted our genes too much since the invention of these drugs and the Spartans are waiting for us on their cliffs in hell.

      Finally, as for the swimmers, I don’t care. They lost because they were cocky and didn’t bother to do any international meets before the Olympics, not because they ran ‘riot’ one night. Worst riot ever, though.

      Reply

    • Wayne Kerr says:

      09:28am | 26/02/13

      At the time of the Sydney Olympics my then next door neighbour who was a cop was on duty at Homebush.  He told me many a story about well known swimmers coming back at night totally smashed.  So really this behaviour is nothing new.

      The only reason it has been made a big deal is because for the first time in living memory Australia did really crap in Olympic Swimming.

      Here’s a tip; it wasn’t the booze or the behaviour it was just that the other countries were better.  If Australia had one a bunch of Golds none of this behaviour would have been an issue or made public

      Reply

    • Wayne Kerr says:

      11:27am | 26/02/13

      oops…correction

      If Australia had won a bunch of Golds

    • Carl Palmer says:

      09:38am | 26/02/13

      What a load of rubbish. The blame lay at the feet of the coaches and administrators who did nothing about pulling these guys - who BTW had an oversized opinion of themselves, into line. The gutless administrators should not have paraded these swimmers in front of the world media. It should have been the administrators AND head coach(s) who should have given a please explain. As for the swimmers, they should have been given a tongue lashing behind closed doors and should have left with a crystal clear understanding of what was expected from them from here on in. As for the Stilnox, qualified medico staff prescribed drug – let’s move on…

      Reply

    • ramases says:

      03:24pm | 26/02/13

      All are to blame equally including the media who built these clowns up with constant stories of how good they were and how there were going to do this and that and the stupid athletes started to believe the crap that was being written about them.
        Its time we had a really good look at all aspects of sport, from juniors to elite and sorted out the dead wood before we become a complete laughing stock, or is that more of a laughing stock. What these athletes did was reprehensible when they were representing their country and the coaches and administrators who refused to act should also be held accountable but as usual there will be the usual suspects and the upper echelons will once again get off scott free.

    • Gab says:

      10:04am | 26/02/13

      If I, as part of my employment, go to the UK to speak at a Conference and instead of having a good sleep the night before I decide to go out on a bender and then embarrass myself and my employer giving a bad presentation, I should be held accountable. 

      The olympians are there to do a job, plain and simple, and we are paying them to do so.  Same as the cricketers, the Socceroos, the Wallabies, etc.  If they’re not mentally fit or feel depressed, they should say so, stay at home and get treatment.  They are the ones who decided to be elite athletes and they should know that pressure comes with it.  How easy it is to blame it on pressure so they can go out there with our money, have a holiday, get blind and, since they’re there, go for a bit of a casual swim.  “At the end of the day” - they would’ve thought - “I’m awesome, I’m the best, I’m young, I’ll have another shot in Rio…”

      As professionals, they should know that if they are not mentally fit to compete, it is their responsibility to say something and pull out, same as any other employee in their work place.

      Reply

    • youdy beaudy says:

      10:44am | 26/02/13

      It’s all over now so why do we have to go over it all the time. It’s like a cracked record. Yes, as Tory wrote, the whole country is addicted to some type of medication or another. Mothers little helper as Mick Jagger sang years ago. We all need help with something.

      As far as the swimmers go, well, they are young and like most young people like to have a good time. They were taught by their elders to drink and go on. That’s where kids learn isn’t it, from the adults otherwise how would they know.

      I sometimes get, not angry, but think that this sporting thingy places too much stress on the young kids. I mean they have to start at a very young age when most kids are playing and doing kid things. These kids are flogged in the pool, on the track or wherever else, starting at early morning with training, swimming kilometres as day and pushing themselves to the limit and what for, so they can have a medal on the mantel which comes by their own effort as individuals and then everything else is stolen by the ones who can’t perform the same feats.

      We have to remember that if the young swimmers told the Olympic people to shove it, that there are too many rules and regulations to follow, then goodbye olympic swimming team or any other team where we compete. This obsessive behaviour is in all sports and is an illness. This having to win, win, win all the time, for the nations importance.

      Yes, we all live on their successes like parasites. They are expected to perform like monkeys on a stick for everyone elses importance or seeming importance.

      Australia is like that with all sports. If they win, they are the greatest and through their good performance that automatically makes us great for some reason but if they lose then they are cut down in the media etc. We could learn a bit about losing gracefully sometimes for a change, not crucifying the athletes to save our face.

      Sports, sports, sports, haven’t we had enough of sports. Everyday, every week, all the time we are brainwashed with sports and all we do is continue supporting the excessive compulsive disorders of not just the athletes but mainly the coaches and trainers and the parents who live their lives and failures through their kids. We know what goes on don’t we. If your kid wins the gold then that makes you very important indeed. Bugger the kids tho, bugger their feelings and health. They win the medal and everyone else associated gets on the rostrum as well.

      Yes, young people, are you sick of the power game, the olympic game or whatever game they play with your young lives. If you lose, then, they will run you down, find something to appease their souls. If you win, well, howdey doody.

      What they don’t realize and that’s the lot of them is that, no swimmers, no glory, no footballers, no glory, no athletes no nothing for the country or them, so, why not try it out and walk away. After all athletes come and go, their reign is not supreme for a long time only a short time then they are cast asunder. That’s what happens in sport.

      Young people will be what they are, young, and growing up. Sure, sometimes they go down the wrong track but that is necessary to learn something hopefully of value, but we don’t have to be on their backs for ever regarding these minor incidents.

      We only have an olympic team because these kids put a lot of their life on hold for others to bask in the glory of the kids endeavours. Let’s be a little bit compassionate because of that. We can’t be the best and the winners all the time as other countries that flog their kids the same way have good performers as well and just maybe it was their day to shine. We need to get over ourselves for that reason. Really, what it comes down too is that Australians are bad losers and that is a fact and highly noticeable. You can’t win all the time just sometimes if the wind blows the right way.

      Reply

    • david says:

      10:50am | 26/02/13

      Drink after work. No problem.

      Drink at work - that’s a problem.

      The swimmers in question were drinking and carrying on ‘at work’. Of course they should be taken to task - just as I would be if I got drunk at my desk this morning and started interrupting everyone in the office.

      Reply

    • JoniM says:

      02:51pm | 26/02/13

      Spot on david !
      Worse still, we paid for their work party and the subsequent enquiry into it !
      And not a gold medal in sight to justify the cost.

    • Neil says:

      10:52am | 26/02/13

      Suits me. I don’t have to watch any of these opportunists make a million bucks or five spruiking cereal or some such to me.

      Reply

    • Gratuitous Adviser says:

      11:04am | 26/02/13

      No matter the devils advocacy, I refuse to take any cultural responsibility for the no-hopers (that’s what they used to be called) in our society.  It is not my culture or up-bringing that these people represent.  In this case they were on the payroll and supposedly representing Australia (diplomats of sort which is what everyone that goes overseas is), which makes it a little worse and it had nothing to do with them coming first, last or in-between.

      The sports media, the tattooed and the lifestyle program watchers may want more but the majority of Australians want an Australian representative sportsperson to win with style, lose with grace and represent us with class.

      Reply

    • DB the Bike RIder says:

      11:23am | 26/02/13

      “Let he who is without a penchant for self medication pour the first gin.”

      Oh Tory, I am slowly falling in love with you.

      Reply

    • fml says:

      11:31am | 26/02/13

      I am outraged!

       

       

      That people consider swimming a sport…

      Reply

    • marley says:

      12:32pm | 26/02/13

      @fml - I’m not outraged that people consider swimming a sport.  I’m outraged that people consider it a career.

    • fml says:

      01:19pm | 26/02/13

      I would consider surf life saving a career, those dudes are awesome, they are like the fire fighters of the sea.

      But yes, these kids need to understand that they are representing australia. Since when has the olympics turned to the hopes and aspirations of individuals from the hopes and aspirations of a nation?

    • marley says:

      02:12pm | 26/02/13

      @fml - I’m with you on the life savers (though down my way, they’re all volunteers).  But there’s a bit more to that than just swimming. 

      Frankly, it bothers me that sportsman of any kind can make the money they do, but at least football players (of whatever code) provide good entertainment for a lot of people for a couple of hours on a weekend.  Swimming?  Not so much.  Where these guys get their inflated sense of worth is really a question in my mind.

    • CJ says:

      12:31pm | 26/02/13

      Practically harmless pot?

      Err, you ARE a journalist, right?

      Reply

    • Gratuitous Adviser says:

      05:38pm | 26/02/13

      GJ
      I did not pick up on that little gem.  Well done.  Maybe Tory has not had a family experience with “practically harmless pot” yet.

    • Kyliemac says:

      06:16pm | 26/02/13

      I so agree CJ, what kind of dangerous message is she trying to sell. It is dangerous in a different way, just ask ex pot smokers.

    • fml says:

      12:53pm | 26/02/13

      Gees why is that bloke on the right sculling a a pint of vodka, the nerve! at his intervention too, no less.

      Reply

    • NightStalker says:

      01:25pm | 26/02/13

      Why don’t you all just leave the blokes alone…if it good enough for our prime minister ‘I was young and niaive’ then its good enough for these blokes to run the same line or swim or whatever.

      Reply

    • Robert S McCormick says:

      01:52pm | 26/02/13

      Recuperating, Tory? Are we really? or is it not that we simply don’t care any more? Recently every time we open the papers there seems to be yet another report of some so-called “athlete”,“elite sportsperson” having been found out taking all sorts of pills, potions, injections, transfusions. You name it, they’ve been indulging in their favourite recreational activity: Drugs & Alcohol.
      Cycling: Destroyed. All codes of Football: Destroyed, Swimming: Destroyed and it won’t be long before Running, Jumping and all the other Track & Field events, Rowing, Boxing, Wrestling, Horse Riding - you name it - will also be Destroyed.
      The only way around it is to stop testing & let these clowns dope themselves to death whilst they show us how bloody wonderful they think they are.

      Reply

    • marley says:

      03:08pm | 26/02/13

      Or simply relegate sports to something we play or do on weekends.

 
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