The following message appears in the October 1997 issue of Clean Power:
As the brisk chill of winter starts to settle over the harvest fields in Indiana, I am reminded that USA Powerlifting has had an abundant harvest this year. Our membership total is creeping toward 5,700 which stands 2nd only to our best year when 5,800 members claimed membership in the American Drug Free Powerlifting Association. Please make no mistake about our doing business name; although we are proud to be USA Powerlifting to help focus us for the future - we remain the same pioneer powerlifting association that we have always been, The ADFPA - setting the standards for integrity in our sport.
I hope you will take note of Dr. Michael Hartle's article later in this Journal. A current issue in amateur athletics today is the availability of over the counter supplements which contain banned substances. You, as an athlete must take on the responsibility to become educated as to the legality and effectiveness of the current offerings for sale on the supplement market. Certainly good, solid nutrition is a mandatory foundation for strength athletes who expect their bodies to perform at peak levels. Many suppliers offer vitamin/mineral and protein supplements which are of high quality, and will benefit your hard workouts by helping to provide the nutrition your body needs to maintain and grow lean muscle mass. The tricky part comes when deciding on supplements which claim, in truth or otherwise, to go beyond the nutrition foundation, and help to activate your body's anabolic processes. While some are beneficial and legal, such as Creatine Monohydrate, there are others, in particular DHEA and Androstendione which are banned substances. These will cause you to fail the drug tests used by USA Powerlifting and the United States Olympic Committee. There are also stimulants available such as ephedrine and it's extracts which will also cause you to flunk the drug test on Meet day. Just because it doesn't take a prescription to buy it, doesn't necessarily mean it's a legal substance. Please make every effort to learn about the supplements you're considering putting into your body. If you have questions about the legal status of a supplement product, call the USOC Hotline @ 1-800-233-0393.
There's an old story that goes something like "If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck - then it must be a duck." This describes our goal to prepare powerlifting for eventual Olympic Consideration. Many of us have watched, deep in thought, as Ballroom Dancing, Snowboarding and other current sports have come under the Olympic eye. With such a wide international representation, it seems that powerlifting should be under the same consideration. Our pro-active response to this situation is to pattern ourselves to the Olympic mold as closely as possible. This has been accomplished in our adoption of USOC guidelines for our Drug Testing/Doping Control. Recently, our Association By-laws were revised to bring them into conformance with those for the National Governing Bodies for Olympic Sports. Our financial status is currently being audited, which is also a requirement. We must continue to adhere to our representative system of democratic leadership while demonstrating the managerial ability to administrate our sport. There will be other steps to take, other hurdles to overcome. What will drive us to this level will be our irresistible will to become what we believe we should be.
A year ago I wrote to you about the promising look our talks on unification with the USPF had taken. Much has been said and written since that time. I do promise you that the ADFPA/USA Powerlifting has conducted itself honorably throughout every phase of this endeavor, irregardless of some accounts. I will stand by this statement of truth under any and all jurisdictions.
Our new membership year, which begins November 1, brings with it the need to cover our costs, which, like everything else has gone up over the years. Our NGB approved at our Annual Meeting membership dues of $30.00 for Open and $15.00 for High School Memberships starting with the 1998 registration year. This modest increase will allow USA Powerlifting to continue to offer the high quality of services to it's members that they have come to expect.
State Chairs are reminded to submit their State Records to the National Office as October Meets finish up - to qualify for their end-of-year reimbursement. This is also a good time to plan with your State Meet Directors to conduct up to (2) out-of -competition drug tests in conjunction with a planned meet. These tests can also be counted toward the individual Meets required 10% minimum testing of competitors, which are considered for reimbursement. Please contact the National Office or Drug Testing Committee Chair Dennis Brady for more information.
I remember learning from a conference leader that in order for a volunteer-driven organization such as ours to be successful, we must recruit well, train well, and thank well. Lately I am reminded that we, mostly I, have not thanked the people who make USA Powerlifting so successful nearly enough. To each of you who give not only to a sport you love, but of yourselves, with the vision that you share with the rest of us; I offer my deepest appreciation. Your efforts inspire and motivate us to become more than we once thought we could be.
Let us all sharpen our focus on what the World's Strongest Sport should be in the future. We'll see you there!
Sincerely,
Michael W. Overdeer
USA Powerlifting President
