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Marc Ratner: Sylvia Steroid Case - Ramifications
Reported By: Boxing Insider - 10.19.2003 02:16 AM
The Executive Director of the Nevada State Athletic Commission, Marc Ratner talked to BoxingInsider.com about the decision of the Nevada State Athletic Commission against Tim Sylvia for steroid use.
BoxingInsider.com: First, in your own words, can you please tell us what happened at the Nevada State Athletic Commission hearing with Tim Sylvia?
Marc Ratner: Today was a hearing on Tim Sylvia and I thought he came in contrite, emotional. He did everything that I expected him to [do]. He was very apologetic, he knew he'd made a mistake, [and] he didn't try to hide from anything. I thought the Commission acted with great compassion. They suspended him for four months and fined him $7,500.
BoxingInsider.com: Can you explain the reason behind that -- where the fine and the suspension came from?
Marc Ratner: Well -- each commissioner -- when these problems happen, they have to look at it on individual merit. Dr. Homanski made the motion and you'd have to talk to him. He thought that was an appropriate suspension and an appropriate fine.
BoxingInsider.com: When we talked to you last week, you said that this was about education. So now, going forward, how does this case educate the public?
Marc Ratner: One of the things, as part of that [decision], he's going to be talking to kids in schools about the dangers of taking steroids and why you shouldn't do it. That's part of the education that he's going to spread -- hopefully as well as the other fighters. You cannot let it go unpunished. I remember last time we spoke I said it would be a combination of both more than likely.
BoxingInsider.com: Published reports state that only four of the fighters in the title matches were actually tested for steroids. Why weren't all the fighters tested for steroids?
Marc Ratner: We are testing championship fights and randomly we test people on every card -- but we haven't tested everybody on all these cards.
BoxingInsider.com: Does it work the same way exactly with boxing?
Marc Ratner: Yes. Exactly the same -- it's the same exact formula. We have a ten-fight card and three championships. We test the three championship-fights and the other seven do not get tested -- though at any time we can test anybody we feel [needs to be tested] with cause. But on every fight card, somebody's tested.
BoxingInsider.com: When we were doing the build-up to UFC 44: Undisputed, we interviewed, UFC Site coordinator, Burt Watson, and he gave us a list of about a thousand things that they test the fighters for. I was just wondering: why aren’t steroids one of the things? They check for everything else.
Marc Ratner: I don't understand. We are testing for steroids. What do you mean?
BoxingInsider.com: Well, they're not testing everybody for steroids. They're just testing for...
Marc Ratner: Do you mean the UFC?
BoxingInsider.com: No, the Commission in general.
Marc Ratner: The Commission in general is testing for all drugs, including anabolic steroids. Absolutely, I don't understand your question.
BoxingInsider.com: I'm just wondering why only four competitors - and not everyone - were tested?
Marc Ratner: That's always been our policy -- to test the championship fighters and anybody else that they desire. We haven't ever tested twenty four guys on a card.
BoxingInsider.com: When we asked Larry Hazard from New Jersey why the fighters are not tested before the fight so that, for want of a better term, fighters don't fight on "roids". He said that because of all the issues of redress, it wasn't feasible. What do you think? Is there a better way to handle this in the future? What can we learn from all this?
Marc Ratner: What we can learn is that no participant in unarmed combat should have an artificial advantage. That's the first lesson. Second lesson -- if you do try to get this artificial advantage, it will hurt you in your future, in later life. The whole idea is to get a level playing field. We want people to come in naturally. It's as simple as that. When it comes to steroid testing, we are -- and this is more recent, because we've had some problem getting enough urine after fights -- we're doing the steroid part first and for other drugs after the fight. So you'd have two tests in one night.
BoxingInsider.com: How does this compare with the Josh Barnett situation -- with regard to heavyweight champions testing positive for steroids?
Marc Ratner: It's quite simple. I thought that Josh's people disputed everything. They felt that the test wasn't right. They felt that we had done something wrong and never admitted [guilt] -- when, in fact, the testing procedures were absolutely fine. Here, in this case, he [Tim Sylvia] admitted he'd made a mistake, and he was very contrite, apologetic and emotional about it.
BoxingInsider.com: To follow that up, what factor did his admission of guilt play in the overall decision?
Marc Ratner: Well, it does. The Commission will be more compassionate to someone who acknowledges that they were wrong than to someone who they know is wrong but doesn't admit it.
BoxingInsider.com: In the report that we had from Ryan Bennett, it said that one member of the Commission commented that he may be the first athlete ever to appear before the Athletic Commission and actually admit to using banned substances. Can you elaborate on that?
Marc Ratner: Well, no. We've had people test positive for cocaine, for marijuana who admitted that -- but for steroids, that's a different story.
BoxingInsider.com: But is Tim the first person to actually fess up and say, "Yes, I'm wrong."
Marc Ratner: The way he did it? Yes! He was the most apologetic and contrite, saying "Yes, I took them knowingly and I made a mistake -- I made the biggest mistake of my life."
BoxingInsider.com: Are you happy with how this all played out, given the unfortunate circumstances?
Marc Ratner: I'm never happy when we have to have a disciplinary hearing, but [Monty Cox] and Tim Sylvia handled it better, and as men, and they took it very well. Hopefully they'll learn from it and he [Tim] will have a chance to regain his championship someday.
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