August/September - 6

Product Focus
No Longer Banned?
A Q&A with Dr. Jeff Konin on the NCAA CSMAS signaling support for
removing cannabis from its banned drug list
By Wesley Sykes
Managing Editor
I
n mid-June, the NCAA
Committee on Competitive
Safeguards and Medical
Aspects of Sports (CSMAS)
signaled its support for removing
cannabis from its banned drug list
and drug-testing protocols.
Its reasoning stemmed from
the December 2022 Summit on
Cannabinoids in College Athletics
where there was a consensus opinion that cannabis
is not a performance-enhancing drug and that a
harm-reduction approach is best implemented at
the school level.
Additional rationale included: focusing on testing
for substances a provide an unfair advantage; taking a
similar approach with cannabis as the NCAA does with
alcohol; and educating student-athletes on the health
threats that are posed.
To get some further insight on the matter of marijuana
used at the collegiate level by athletes, Training &
Conditioning spoke to Jeff Konin, Ph.D., ATC, PT,
FACSM, FNATA, clinical professor and Director of the
Doctor of Athletic Training at Florida International
6 | Training & Conditioning August/September 2023
University. Konin is also the director of the global
initiative for cannabinoid research and education.
Below is an excerpt from our Q&A. The full version
can be found on training-conditioning.com.
Training & Conditioning: What is your initial reaction
to the NCAA CSMAS showing support for removing
cannabis from the NCAA's banned drug list and testing
protocols?
Jeff Konin: I was pleased to see the recommendation
from the NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards
and Medical Aspects of Sports. I view the role of the
NCAA with respect to banned substances primarily to
assure fair play absent performance-enhancing measures
that athletes might use to create unfair competitive
advantages. We have known for a very long time that the
research to date has been clear in that cannabis in all of
its forms is not a performance-enhancing drug/plant.
We have followed NCAA drug testing policies for
decades now. Despite past measures, the process as we
know it has not served as the deterrent we all wished
it would have with respect to athletes refraining from
marijuana use. In 2023, society, and in particular the
United States, has taken on a more acceptable perception
toward marijuana use.

http://www.training-conditioning.com

August/September

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of August/September

Editor's Letter: Cultivating the Necessary Soft Skills
Product Focus: Q&A with Dr. Jeff Konin on the NCAA and Cannabis
The Mountaineer Way: How WVU develops football players
Where ATs Advance: Scenes from the 74th NATA Expo
2023 Athletic Trainer Survey Results
Therapy Focus: Role of Aquatic Therapy in ACL Recovery
Technology Focus: Best Practices to Consider with On-Sites AEDs
Nutrition Focus: Interdisciplinary Collaboration in Wrestling
Product Marketplace
Ad Index
August/September - 1
August/September - 2
August/September - 3
August/September - Editor's Letter: Cultivating the Necessary Soft Skills
August/September - 5
August/September - Product Focus: Q&A with Dr. Jeff Konin on the NCAA and Cannabis
August/September - 7
August/September - 8
August/September - 9
August/September - The Mountaineer Way: How WVU develops football players
August/September - 11
August/September - 12
August/September - Where ATs Advance: Scenes from the 74th NATA Expo
August/September - 14
August/September - 15
August/September - 16
August/September - 17
August/September - 18
August/September - 19
August/September - 2023 Athletic Trainer Survey Results
August/September - 21
August/September - 22
August/September - 23
August/September - 24
August/September - 25
August/September - Therapy Focus: Role of Aquatic Therapy in ACL Recovery
August/September - 27
August/September - 28
August/September - Technology Focus: Best Practices to Consider with On-Sites AEDs
August/September - Nutrition Focus: Interdisciplinary Collaboration in Wrestling
August/September - 31
August/September - 32
August/September - Product Marketplace
August/September - Ad Index
August/September - 35
August/September - 36
August/September - 37
August/September - 38
August/September - 39
August/September - 40
August/September - 41
August/September - 42
August/September - 43
August/September - 44
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August/September - 53
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August/September - 55
August/September - 56
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