Scorecard

Listening to Alberto

Alberto Salazar, who through-out his career has spoken with fervor about everything from his training to his faith, gives much of the credit for his recent win in the Comrades Marathon in South Africa (SCORECARD, June 13), his first major victory in 12 years, to a surprising source: the drug Prozac.

Salazar, 35, says he started taking Prozac last August, after consulting with Paul Raether, a friend and sports-medicine physician from Portland, and with Jan Smulovitz, an endocrinologist from Eugene, Ore. According to Salazar, years of intense training, coupled with episodes of heat exhaustion in a few races, had "suppressed [his] body's endocrine system," leaving him unable to run at his accustomed level and also chronically fatigued, listless and susceptible to illness.

"It wasn't that I was depressed or sad," says Salazar. "I just never had any energy or zest. I knew there was something wrong with my whole system."

Raether theorizes that overtraining can cause hormonal changes deep in the brain that are closely related to those seen in certain forms of depression. Such "atypical depressions," says Raether, are being treated with Prozac. "I'm leery of putting myself out on a limb and getting crucified by the medical community," he says, "but I think it's important to get the message out to athletes who are going from doctor to doctor trying to find what's wrong with them and are being told, 'It's all in your head.' Maybe it is in their heads, but it's chemical."

A former national-class distance runner, Raether is working with two other runners on Prozac. (He would not identify them.) Raether stresses that the drug is not a performance-enhancing substance and is not on the banned list for any sport except shooting. He hopes soon to join with an endocrinologist and a psychiatrist to conduct a study of the effects of Prozac on a large number of athletes. Meanwhile, he is watching Salazar's seeming rejuvenation with avid interest.

But before other runners lace up their shoes and dash off to their doctors for Prozac prescriptions, it's important to note that no medical literature exists explicitly indicating that Prozac, which is used primarily to treat depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder, has any effect on the endocrine system or on what is referred to as overtraining. "I've never heard of using Prozac in such a situation," says Gary Wadler, an internist at Cornell University Medical College and the coauthor of Drugs and the Athlete. "I would be very concerned about reacting to anecdotal reports without more documented evidence. People may hear of this and say, 'Wow, I'll try that.' It could be like opening a Pandora's box."

Horse Sense

In response to studies conducted by veterinarians at the universities of Georgia and Tennessee showing that heat and humidity can endanger horses, Atlanta Olympic organizers say they will consider modifying the equestrian competition for the 1996 Games. Proposed changes include shortening distances, eliminating some jumps and increasing the time allowed to complete the cross-country portion of the demanding three-day event.

Given that, one wonders about the wisdom of adding the sport of mountain biking to the Olympic program in Atlanta. Competitors in that event will pedal over grueling wilderness trails in races as long as 70 kilometers.