Steroid testing may start with 4A/5A high schools, By: Josh Hixson

State-wide steroid testing this fall could start with 4A and 5A high school athletes, according to Plano Independent School Officials.

Bills passed Tuesday in the Texas Senate and House of Representatives would require 30 percent of all high schools and at least 3 percent of all public school athletes in Texas to undergo a test for steroid use.

While not all schools would be required to conduct steroid testing, Cliff Odenwald, PISD’s athletic director, said 4A and 5A high schools would likely be the first required to administer the test.

“From information I have received, the number of 4A and 5A schools will definitely be tested more than the smaller classifications,” Odenwald said.

The Senate’s version of the bill would require the state to cover the costs of testing, while the House’s bill would assess a fee on sports tickets through the University Interscholastic League (UIL). The UIL — created in 1910 — is an agency of the state governing high school sports. UIL officials declined to comment on the two bills, but said the topic of steroid testing would be addressed at their Medical Advisory Committee meeting, which will take place Sunday in Austin.

Early reports put the cost of a steroid testing program at $2.8 million to $4 million.

Odenwald said the district endorses random steroid testing for its student athletes, however the costs of such testing should be covered by the state.

“When the state mandates it, the state needs to pay for it,” Odenwald said. “If they appropriated $12 million, then they could test all the schools. But that much money hasn’t been appropriated.”

Athletic coordinators at two of PISD’s three senior high schools said they were in favor of a possible steroid testing program.

“Anytime you can have an opportunity for this type of testing, it is a good preventative measure,” said Johnny Ringo, Plano East Senior High School’s athletics coordinator and head football coach. “We are not with kids 24 hours a day. Through this testing and the educational opportunities we provide, hopefully they will avoid taking steroids. I think that if money was available it would be a great idea to test everyone.”

Mike Hughes, Plano West Senior High School’s athletics coordinator and head football coach, said he believes the proposed testing program would be a deterrent for student athletes considering the use of steroids as a performance enhancer.

“Anytime you tell the kids you are going to test them, that is a deterrent,” Hughes said. “We have good kids, but sometimes good kids make bad decisions. We are ready to initiate the testing program and go on about our business.”

Gerald Brence, Plano Senior High School athletics coordinator and head football coach, was unavailable for comment.

Steroid expert and endocrinologist at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas Dr. Richard Auchus said the type of steroid testing the bills propose can identify the ratio between the testosterone and epitestosterone (a natural steroid in the human body).

Sources of testosterone outside the human body (synthetic steroids) do not affect levels of epitestosterone in the body. Tests analyzing the ratio between testosterone and epitestosterone in an athlete’s urine are used to determine if they are using performance enhancing steroids, Auchus said.

A much more detailed testing method called Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) is considered the “gold standard” for steroid identification because it can positively identify the presence of synthetic steroids, not just high levels of testosterone, Auchus said.

“Screening by GC-MS is not widely available,” Auchus said. “You can’t just go down the street to your local lab and get this test run.”

Auchus said he questions the amount of money the state is willing to put forth in an effort to provide a legitimate steroid test with real results and penalties.

“If (the state) wants this to be effective at all, the consequences have to be significant,” Auchus said. “If the consequences for steroid use are going to be significant, then the testing has to be done right. That is not going to be cheap.”

Penalties for failing the steroid test include:

Senate version:

*First positive test would result in a 30 day suspension.

*Second positive test would result in year-long suspension.

*Third positive test would result in permanent ban from UIL sports.

* Refusing to take the test would equal a positive test.

House version:

*UIL would decide all penalties for a positive test.