Coach Wants Education On Drugs, Foods

The
Coach of  Rivers State Weightlifting
Association (RSWA), Reginald Briggs, has urged the National Sports Commission
(NSC) to ensure that athletes are educated on the appropriate foods and drugs
to take.

Briggs told the Tidesports
in Lagos yesterday that such knowledge would guide them against taking drugs or
foods that would affect their careers.

“The NSC, through the national
body, should look into what the athletes eat, especially their diet and drugs,
because some might be detrimental to their health.

“It is also important to avoid
the prohibited drugs that could incriminate them during dope screening in
international competitions,’’ he said.

Briggs said that private and public medical experts should be engaged by the NSC to carry out researches in that direction and afterward, pass the findings to athletes and coaches at seminars.

According to him, some
athletes may test positive to banned substances due to ignorance because they
lacked knowledge of them.

Briggs also urged athletes to
avoid self medication and consult sports medicine experts whenever there was
need for it.

He noted that carbohydrate and
protein were good for weightlifters because of the nature of the sport.

“As
much as it is good for weightlifters to eat well because they require strength
to carry weights, training is also important,’’ he added.