The second annual Olympic snowboarding competition got underway in Salt Lake City without the attendance of Nagano’s gold medalist, Canadian Ross Rebagliati. If you remember the 1998 Olympics in Japan, scandal erupted when Ross tested positive for cannabinoids and was forced to forfeit his medal. The award was restored upon appeal because there was no clear rule stating marijuana as a banned substance. He wanted to come and watch this year’s events, but United States Customs stopped his entry into the country. They cited an obscure law that forbids entry to anyone who has admitted to using illegal narcotics. Curiously, Ross actually denied using marijuana, and claimed it probably got into his blood second-hand at a party. Even stranger is how the law has been selectively applied. If other countries enforced such a law, Bill Clinton would have never been allowed out of the United States. There was no immigration ban imposed on unrepentant, convicted marijuana addict Paul McCartney, who recently sang at the Super Bowl. One might suspect a case of youth discrimination. I believe it was just an attempt by authorities to hide a gold medalist that smokes marijuana. Nothing lessens the impact of a perfectly good “Drugs Kill” campaign than a pothead who is also a world-class champion.
