It was the detection of the drug modafinil that triggered the discovery of the controversial steroid THG. Here are some frequently asked questions about the drug.
What exactly is the controversy surrounding modafinil?
Stored urine samples from the 2003 U.S. track and field championships were retested after UCLA's doping control laboratory devised a test for the previously undetectable steroid tetrahydrogestrinone (THG). During the course of retesting, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency discovered several positives for the stimulant modafinil.
Modafinil, also known as provigil in the U.S., is a prescription drug that helps people who suffer from narcolepsy (a sleep disorder associated with uncontrollable sleepiness and frequent daytime sleeping) to stay awake during the day.
Where and when did the modafinil story first break?
Modafinil became big news in the sports world when American sprinter Kelli White tested positive for the stimulant at the world track and field championships in Paris in August.
White passed a drug test after the 200-metre final, but tested positive after the 100-metre final, the first of her two sprint golds in Paris.
Why is the use of modafinil such a big deal?
Arne Ljungqvist, the International Association of Athletics Federations' medical commission chief, believes there is a link between modafinil and THG - that athletes who took THG believed modafinil would act as a masking agent.
"What emerges now is a pattern," Ljungqvist told The Associated
Press after discovering the positive test results. "People have
taken THG for the obvious reason that it's been designed with the
intent not to be discovered.
"And modafinil seems to have become a fashionable stimulant among certain athletes as well. It's a pattern I've seen before, where drugs have become popular and we find them."
Kelli White has repeatedly proclaimed her innocence. She has claimed that she used the drug to treat hereditary narcolepsy and didn't apply for a medical waiver or include it on her doping control form in Paris because it wasn't on the prohibited drug list.
The IAAF took the stance that even though modafinil was not specified
by name on its 2003 banned list, the drug was covered under the stimulants
category of "related substances."
As of 2004, modafinil is on the banned substance list as a stimulant. WADA has classified it as a performance-enhancing drug because it is believed to increase an athlete's alertness.
Who has tested positive for modafinil?
So far, only American athletes have been publicly identified with illicit modafinil use:
Kelli White, U.S. sprinter. The IAAF charged White with a doping offence and submitted her case to U.S. authorities for disciplinary action. She could be stripped of her two gold medals at the world championship.
Chris Phillips, U.S. sprinter. Phillips, who finished fifth in the 110-metre hurdles in August. He tested positive for modafinil at the Paris meet.
Calvin Harrison, U.S. sprinter. An Olympic and world gold medallist, Harrison also tested positive for the stimulant this past summer.
Chryste Gaines, U.S. sprinter. Gaines, 33, was a member of the victorious women's 4x100-metre relay team in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. She tested positive for modafinil at the U.S. track and field championships in July.
Sandra Glover, U.S. hurdler. A four-time U.S. champion in the women's 400 hurdles, she won silver at the world track championships in August at Paris. She tested positive at the U.S. track and field championships in June.
Eric Thomas, U.S. hurdler. 2003 U.S. outdoor 400 metre hurdles champion. He tested positive at the U.S. track and field championships in June.
John McEwen, U.S. hammer thrower. He tested positive at the U.S.
track and field championships in June.
How do you use modafinil?
Modafinil is a tablet that is taken orally and should only be taken
as directed by a physician.
The dose of modafinil varies for different patients, with adults, on
average, being prescribed 200 milligram a day to be taken as a single
dose in the morning.
Possible side effects of modafinil include blurred vision or other vision
changes, chills or fever, clumsiness or unsteadiness, confusion, dizziness
or fainting, increased thirst and increased urination, mental depression,
problems with memory, rapidly changing moods, and shortness of breath.
