HIV and SPORTS
By Rene Bonsubre, Jr.
PhilBoxing.com
Mon, 01 Dec 2008
December 1 is the twentieth anniversary of World AIDS Day. Concerned individuals and organizations around the world come together on this day to bring attention to the global AIDS epidemic.
HIV is the virus that attacks the body's immune system which is its defence against diseases. A person is considered to have developed AIDS when the immune system is so weak it can no longer fight a wide array of diseases that a healthy person would have no problem dealing with.
AIDS was first brought to the world?s attention in 1981 when five homosexual men in Los Angeles were reported by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) with Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia. More than 25 million people have died from AIDS and there are an estimated 40 million people worldwide currently living with the virus.
In the world of sports, an HIV positive athlete first grabbed headlines in the aftermath of the 1988 Seoul Olympics diving event when diving legend Greg Louganis of the U.S. hit his head on the diving board and suffered a cut that lead him to seek medical attention. Louganis knew he was HIV positive prior to the competition and he felt he had a duty to tell the doctor about his status. No one was informed until years later when he released the information is his book.
One does not get AIDS in a swimming pool as the virus is fragile outside the human body. Still, news of Louganis? HIV status raised eyebrows and questions about the virus in the sports arena.
In 1991, Earvin ?Magic? Johnson gave the shocking announcement that he was HIV positive. Many of his fellow basketball players were worried about getting the virus during a game. Objections were raised when he was chosen to play for the historic first Dream Team that represented the U.S. during the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. Medical experts tried to allay people?s fears but Magic had to live and play with the stigma. That did not stop him from joining the gold medal winning squad making a brief but successful NBA comeback.
Thanks to triple combination antiretroviral maintenance therapy, Magic Johnson is still healthy today and is an influential representative of the HIV positive community. Continuous treatment can keep the virus under control and the immune system healthy. People on HIV treatment can live a healthy and active life.
In 1996, former WBO heavyweight titlist Tommy Morrison, who played Tommy Gunn in the movie Rocky V, tested positive for HIV. Despite his positive test, Morrison boxed once more, knocking out Marcus Rhode in Japan in November 1996. This also raised concerns about whether a boxer can get HIV when blood is spilled when the fighters are cut. The risk is there but cuts tend to bleed outward, not inward, making it unlikely that enough blood can be absorbed that can lead to infection.
Morrison has insisted that the first test was a false positive and has tested negative in a series of tests. He staged a comeback fight in 2007 after being licensed by the West Virginia Athletic Commission. He knocked out his opponent John Castle in two rounds. There was still controversy about his HIV status and being licensed but he still fought last February in Mexico, scoring a 3rd round TKO win over Matt Weishaar. Morrison?s record is now 48 W ? 3 L ? 1 D with 42 KO?s.
Other prominent boxers who tested positive for HIV include former world lightweight champion Esteban de Jesus who died in 1989 and former WBC superbantamweight champion Paul Banke. They did not get infected while practicing their profession in the ring.
There is still no documented case of HIV transmission from athlete to athlete even in the bloodiest of sports. It would be unjust to penalize and discriminate against HIV positive athletes or any HIV positive person.
HIV is passed through sexual contact; through contact with blood or other body fluids (in drug addicts who share contaminated IV needles); intrapartum or perinatally from an HIV positive mother to infant. Contact with sweat, tears or saliva has never been shown to result in transmission of HIV.
So, as a friendly reminder - abstaining from sex is the absolute way of avoiding sexual transmission of HIV but if you have to do it please practice safe sex by using condoms and IV drug users should avoid sharing needles.
If for any reason you think you have HIV consult a physician for guidance regarding various counselling, testing and treatment centers.
Be safe.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Rene Bonsubre, Jr..
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