E-Sports tournament organisers to begin random drug testing

[HEXUS]

The Electronic Sports League (ESL) is the first such organisation to implement this policy.

Read more.

[krazy_olie]

People are doping for video games?
wuht?

[Obie]

This is a smart move and one that needed to happen

[scaryjim]

People are doping for video games?
wuht?

There was a $250,000 prize pot for pro gamers to win at the ESL One Katowice

People are doping for a quarter-million prize pot. The nature of the contest is almost irrelevant at that point - you offer a large enough prize and people will find ways to gain a "competitive advantage"...

[Silmaril.SE]

It seems ridiculous at first, but scaryjim is bang on the money. And to be taken seriously, the playing field has *got* to be level.

[azer]

funny how Semphis used these performance enhancers, and yet his teams, and him in particular have been the butt of many jokes for some time for being very mediocre CS players.

[Ttaskmaster]

Would that only be illegal/questionable medication-like substances, or would it extend to things like energy drinks?

[abaxas]

Surely, it'll just mean people get prescriptions instead.

[aidanjt]

Would that only be illegal/questionable medication-like substances, or would it extend to things like energy drinks?

Probably, these guys would almost certainly pass out on their keyboards if they couldn't caffeine and sugar up. I imagine it's just amphetamines and other such medical grade stimulants that they're after.

[Corky34]

Probably, these guys would almost certainly pass out on their keyboards if they couldn't caffeine and sugar up. I imagine it's just amphetamines and other such medical grade stimulants that they're after.

From what i read it's the opposite of stimulants, IIRC one CS player admitted his team takes a drug intended for ADHD suffers to help them keep calm and and level headed in the heat of competition.

[aidanjt]

From what i read it's the opposite of stimulants, IIRC one CS player admitted his team takes a drug intended for ADHD suffers to help them keep calm and and level headed in the heat of competition.

Actually, that's what they treat ADHD sufferers with. As counter-intuitive as it seems.

[Corky34]

My mistake, I just assumed when i read Pro Counter-Strike Player: "We were all on Adderall" and saw the words ADHD I just assumed the last thing you would give someone whose hyper would be a stimulant, you learn something new everyday.

[aidanjt]

I wonder if this would bar legitimate ADHD sufferers. It'd be sad for them if they couldn't compete professionally on the basis of a mental disability.

[Ross1]

I wonder if this would bar legitimate ADHD sufferers. It'd be sad for them if they couldn't compete professionally on the basis of a mental disability.

Might be worth looking at analogous examples in more physical sports.

For instance, oscar pistorius (lets forget the off track activities for now) was allowed to compete with his blades in the fully able bodied olympics after years of testing, and standardising the length, the bounce, etc.

There was a huge amount of checking to make sure those blades offered no advantage to him. (The olympics have stricter regulation over the blades than the paralympics do, which led to this: http://www.theguardian.com/sport/201...ius-angry-loss )

There may need to be a similar amount of work on adderall if its banned even from TUE usage. The problem is analysing mental/cognitive performance is possibly tougher than looking at physical performance.

[cps1974]

gosh next someone will suggest there have been doping issues in professional (non E) sports