NCAA panel suggests removal of marijuana from banned drug list during athlete testing
An NCAA panel has suggested the removal of marijuana from the banned drug list and testing protocols. The NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports (CSMAS) stated that testing should be limited to performance-enhancing drugs only and that weed does not enhance performance as per Swimswam.
According to an article published on the official NCAA website, the committee will gather inputs from its membership after which a final decision can be expected in the fall. The committee will also seek support from the NCAA Board of Governors to put an end to testing for cannabis at NCAA Championship events while a legislative action is considered as per the aforementioned source.
The NCAA started considering the change after last December's Summit on Cannabinoids in College Athletics which included the consensus opinion that marijuana is not a performance-enhancing drug. The other additional rationale as posted on the NCAA website is attached below:
- Focusing on testing for substances that provide an unfair advantage by enhancing athletic performance.
- Shifting toward a harm reduction philosophy for cannabis, similar to the approaches taken with alcohol.
- Realigning toward institutional testing and how that testing supports/enhances campus efforts to identify problematic cannabis use.
- Educating student-athletes on the health threats posed by contemporary cannabis and methods of use.
- Identifying and explaining relevant harm reduction/mitigation strategies to those student-athletes who choose to legally consume cannabis.
According to the aforementioned source, to remove the cannabinoid class from the NCAA list of banned drugs, the governance body of all three NCAA divisions would have to introduce and adopt legislation.
NCAA increased the THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) threshold required for a positive test from 35 to 150 nanograms per millimeter. The increment was made citing the level set by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) as per Swimswam.
Marijuana continues to be banned at the Olympic level for in-competition testing because World Anti-Doping Agency considers THC a performance-enhancing substance as per the aforementioned source. Last year WADA decided to keep marijuana banned in competitions in 2023.
Marijuana-related incidents in swimming in recent times
American Swimmer Tate Jackson was banned from competition after he tested positive for THC according to Swimswam. Joseph Schooling, a pro swimmer from Singapore and an Olympic gold medallist was recently banned by his country from competing after he confessed to using marijuana.
The ban was a result of Singapore military policy and doesn't come under the anti-doping framework according to the aforementioned source. Another instance in which an athlete was involved in an incident related to cannabis was American track and field athlete Sha'Carri Richardson.
Back in 2021, Sha'Carri Richardson was removed from Team USA as she tested positive for THC. In the USA, marijuana has been approved recreationally in 23 states and also in the District of Columbia. It is also medically approved in 40 states in the USA. As per the aforementioned source, federally, marijuana remains illegal and classified as a Schedule I drug alongside heroin and cocaine.