Pushtoday
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New women’s UFC champion Holly Holm is sponsored by a company that sells banned substances in sports.
Holly Holm is the new women’s bantamweight UFC champion after beating undefeated Ronda Rousey at UFC 193 on November 15, 2015. Holm, who is undefeated in MMA, knocked out the UFC’s most dominating fighter – Rousey -with a high kick to the neck.
Now, a few days on from the epic win for Holm, the world’s media is questioning her sponsorships choices, after it came to light one of them sells selective androgen-receptor modulators (SARMs) as part of the dietary supplement line.
Intel Pharma sponsor Holm, but also sell four products that would be banned in the UFC and contain prohibited substances in sports by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Enforced by the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), UFC fighters are forbidden from using anabolic steroids, human growth hormone and other performance enhancing drugs (PEDs), including SARMs.
SARMs are derivatives of the male hormone Testosterone and were developed to enhance performance, but also be side effect free. Whilst, SARMs will also cause negative effects on users, such as a decreased testosterone level, they will also add muscle mass, strength and accelerate speed and fat loss. For this reason they’re rightfully banned substances and are on the WADA List.
Before agreeing to the sponsorship deal with Intel Pharma, her manager said they were aware of the banned products sold by their sister site – JAKNutrition.com.
“Holly didn’t really use them so it’s not a big deal. I’m sure she didn’t use any of them. She might have taken a picture with one,” said Lenny Fresquez.
Holm has used her Instagram account to promote Intel Pharma products, posting that she had recent used a BCAA formulation named Azid and it had helped her recovery after training.
Fresquez told USA Today that they had not yet decided whether to extend the one-fight contract with Intel Pharma.
However, Intel Pharma have claimed that they stopped selling SARMs as of June 2015, before their contract began with Holm.
CEO Landon Suggs suggested they had wanted to bring Holm onboard because she is an elite athlete. He said: “There is no other “secret” to Holly’s success other than that hard work, along with an incredible team of coaches, sparring partners, family support, and just plain crazy athleticism.”
“Holly’s success was not a shock to those of us who knew of her talent long before Saturday. And we couldn’t be more thrilled for her that the world now knows what we always believed.”
This is not the first time an athlete has been under the spotlight for one of the sponsor’s actions. Between 2012 and 2014, Rousey was sponsored by Gaspari Nutrition, who were found to be selling dietary supplements containing anabolic steroids.
The UFC reiterated their rules and guidelines on substance use and abuse, stating that it is the athlete’s liability for what they ingest. Either knowingly or unknowingly, the athlete is responsible.
There is no suggestion Holm has used SARMs and has been drug tested five times since July 1. All her samples came back clean.
Rousey has been tested nine times during the same period and all sample returned clean.
Source:
Konstantinides, A. (November 18, 2015). Holly Holm’s sponsorship under scrutiny: Fighter’s ties to company with ‘steroid alternatives’ banned by World Anti-Doping Agency
Holly Holm is the new women’s bantamweight UFC champion after beating undefeated Ronda Rousey at UFC 193 on November 15, 2015. Holm, who is undefeated in MMA, knocked out the UFC’s most dominating fighter – Rousey -with a high kick to the neck.
Now, a few days on from the epic win for Holm, the world’s media is questioning her sponsorships choices, after it came to light one of them sells selective androgen-receptor modulators (SARMs) as part of the dietary supplement line.
Intel Pharma sponsor Holm, but also sell four products that would be banned in the UFC and contain prohibited substances in sports by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). Enforced by the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), UFC fighters are forbidden from using anabolic steroids, human growth hormone and other performance enhancing drugs (PEDs), including SARMs.
SARMs are derivatives of the male hormone Testosterone and were developed to enhance performance, but also be side effect free. Whilst, SARMs will also cause negative effects on users, such as a decreased testosterone level, they will also add muscle mass, strength and accelerate speed and fat loss. For this reason they’re rightfully banned substances and are on the WADA List.
Before agreeing to the sponsorship deal with Intel Pharma, her manager said they were aware of the banned products sold by their sister site – JAKNutrition.com.
“Holly didn’t really use them so it’s not a big deal. I’m sure she didn’t use any of them. She might have taken a picture with one,” said Lenny Fresquez.
Holm has used her Instagram account to promote Intel Pharma products, posting that she had recent used a BCAA formulation named Azid and it had helped her recovery after training.
Fresquez told USA Today that they had not yet decided whether to extend the one-fight contract with Intel Pharma.
However, Intel Pharma have claimed that they stopped selling SARMs as of June 2015, before their contract began with Holm.
CEO Landon Suggs suggested they had wanted to bring Holm onboard because she is an elite athlete. He said: “There is no other “secret” to Holly’s success other than that hard work, along with an incredible team of coaches, sparring partners, family support, and just plain crazy athleticism.”
“Holly’s success was not a shock to those of us who knew of her talent long before Saturday. And we couldn’t be more thrilled for her that the world now knows what we always believed.”
This is not the first time an athlete has been under the spotlight for one of the sponsor’s actions. Between 2012 and 2014, Rousey was sponsored by Gaspari Nutrition, who were found to be selling dietary supplements containing anabolic steroids.
The UFC reiterated their rules and guidelines on substance use and abuse, stating that it is the athlete’s liability for what they ingest. Either knowingly or unknowingly, the athlete is responsible.
There is no suggestion Holm has used SARMs and has been drug tested five times since July 1. All her samples came back clean.
Rousey has been tested nine times during the same period and all sample returned clean.
Source:
Konstantinides, A. (November 18, 2015). Holly Holm’s sponsorship under scrutiny: Fighter’s ties to company with ‘steroid alternatives’ banned by World Anti-Doping Agency
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