Barry Bonds and the BALCO Controversy - Part Three
By Michael Williams (7/24/2006)
The Chronicle Exposé
Bonds has
consistently denied that he has ever used anabolic steroids. On at least one
occasion, however, Bonds seems to have changed his tune. On December 3, 2004,
the San Francisco Chronicle ran a story about Bonds’ testimony in front of a
grand jury a year earlier. During his testimony Bonds admitted that in 2003
Anderson regularly gave him two substances, which he called “the clear” and “the
cream.” Bonds claimed that the trainer misled him, telling him that “the clear”
was flaxseed oil (a nutritional supplement) and “the clear” was a specially
formulated pain-relieving balm for the use of athletes. Aside from these two,
the Chronicle alleged that Bonds had been using human growth hormone (HGH),
Depo-Testosterone, insulin and a drug for female infertility that can be used to
mask steroid use.
At the center of the controversy was BALCO, also known as The Bay Area
Laboratory Co-Operative. BALCO was a medical lab that specialized in testing
athletes for nutritional deficiencies. The lab also provided the supplements to
make up or such deficiencies. Bonds was often tested at BALCO – he also received
his supplements there.
During the BALCO scandal trial, the founder and owner of BALCO, Victor Conte,
identified “the clear” as the advanced steroid THG, and the prosecuting team
alleged that “the cream” was a testosterone-based ointment. Like Anderson, it
seems that Conte had been selling “the clear” as flaxseed oil. An Olympic
sprinter, Tim Montgomery, has testified that the BALCO founder used flaxseed oil
containers to send "the clear" to his customers.
Bonds later admitted that he might have "unknowingly" used steroids, but again
maintained that the substances had no significant effect on his recent
record-breaking seasons."
Barry Bonds and the BALCO Controversy Part One
Barry Bonds and the BALCO Controversy Part Two
Barry Bonds and the BALCO Controversy Conclusion |