Monday's Other Press Conference Was Interesting, Too
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Mark Howe-mhowe@timesuniononline.com
Every football fan in the good ol’ USA is aware of the news conference in Colorado Monday afternoon, the one in which Peyton Manning announced his retirement after 18 seasons in the National Football League. The other sports-based news conference, involving Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova, was interesting, too. Making a long story short, Sharapova has been taking the drug Meldonium for a decade to help with a variety of health issues. She said her family has a history of diabetes and Meldonium helps keep those symptoms at bay. The drug isn’t approved for use in the United States and is made in Latvia. The only time I’ve ever heard of Latvia is during an Olympic opening ceremony as one of those European countries that sends about two dozen athletes to the games. According to the National Institutes of Health, the anti-ischemic drug Meldonium “demonstrates an increase in endurance performance of athletes, improved rehabilitation after exercise, protection against stress, and enhanced activations of central nervous system functions.” As a great philosopher of our time once said, “here’s your sign.” The drug was on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s watch list for several years, and was added to the banned substance list effective Jan. 1. WADA sent an e-mail in December notifying athletes, including Sharapova by her admission, of the ban. Like so many e-mails we all get every day, she just never got around to reading that particular one, and now the price is high. Three major corporations dropped her for endorsements before the end of the day; contracts that add up to well over $80 million. To her credit, she owned up. So many athletes, particularily baseball players testifying before Congress, denied everything, and like children with chocolate all over their faces, we knew they were lying. She said it was her responsibility to check, and she did not. To be fair, the list has so many items on it that I wouldn’t hold anyone to memorizing the list. To be honest, I’m glad I’m a writer because I’m not so sure how to pronounce almost all of them. When I go to a new doctor, I know the staff is going to ask what I’m taking, so I take the drugs with me. One drug I take has 24 letters in it. Eye tests aren’t that hard. The bottom line is every athlete needs to be aware of what they ingest, and athletes shouldn’t take just one person’s word for it. Knowledge is power. Sharapova handled herself with dignity, and it was smart to get in front of the situation before rumors took over. Hopefully, it’s not the end of the line for her career, but if it is, so be it. In that first press conference, I couldn’t help but smile while listening to Manning’s comments as I was pumping gas. There can be no understating what Manning’s career in Indiana did for sports fans in the state. When I first moved to the Hoosier State, watching Manning and the Colts quickly became a household tradition on fall Sundays in the newly-established Howe household. The tradition continues to this day, even as our home evolves and kids grow up. It’s hard to say what our lives would be like during football season if the Colts had stunk up the place, as they generally did before Manning arrived on the scene. The Colts find themselves at a crossroads where if they can’t get their current superstar quarterback, Andrew Luck, the supporting cast he needs, then backing up the Brinks truck to Andrew’s garage with his next contract will be pointless to the organization. Did Colts GM Ryan Grigson notice the presence of Jeff Saturday at Manning’s retirement party? Manning knows fully the role Saturday and his offensive line in Indianapolis had in his career. If Luck has another season-ending injury that comes from running for his life, that’s on Grigson. It’s not a quick-fix situation, but things need to get better fast if there will ever be a hall-of-fame quarterback to actually retire in Indy. I have zero doubt Luck will do his part to take care of and show the proper appreciation to his teammates for performing well. But the current line has been bad for the last two years, and everyone knows it. Mr. Grigson, you’re on the clock.
