Prep athletes face steroid tests

Program begins in July for three sports; public and private schools won't split, By: John Lembo

There will be steroid testing in high school sports next season.

There won't be two different governing bodies.

On Friday, the Legislature passed a one-year pilot program that will randomly test football players, baseball players and weightlifters beginning in July. The FHSAA will oversee the testing, and all member schools will be subject to the law effective July 1, according to The Associated Press.

The tests will be distributed randomly to 1 percent of the athletes in those aforementioned sports, and the measure will include $100,000 to pay for the testing. According to the The Associated Press, any student who refuses to provide a urine sample would be ineligible to stay on the team, and those who test positive will be suspended from the team but could be reinstated if they pass a follow-up test.

"I'm fine with it," Southeast High football coach and athletic director Paul Maechtle told The Herald on Wednesday. "It's something that's been in the works."

The Senate passed the bill 39-0 but backed off an amendment rejected by the House that would have created a separate governing body for the state's public and private schools. The measure was suggested by some lawmakers who believed the FHSAA was unfair to its private members.

The FHSAA is comprised of 426 public schools and 224 private schools, according to The Associated Press.

"Having one governing body is good," Saint Stephen's athletic director Dave Samler said Wednesday. "I wouldn't change that. . . . I don't think (the private schools having their own body) is necessary. Then you get into different rules, and you can have one set of rules for everyone."