OPINION: WILL IMG ASSET AND HBO 'REAL SPORTS' REPORTER MARY CARILLO'S LIE ABOUT TESTING FOR STEROIDS ON 'WORLD'S STRONGEST MAN' HARM AMERICA'S YOUTH? IT SURE LOOKS LIKE IT

• Al THOMPSON
• Posted on Monday, March 27, 2023

Award winning journalist Mary Carillo seems to have thrown all her credibility out the window after her deceitful coverage of IMG's "World's Strongest Man." Carillo has long ties to IMG, the company that owns "World's Strongest Man," a show that's been condemned for steroid use that's been confirmed by it's own competitors.

There's been no gray area with regards to widespread use of anabolic steroids and other dangerous PEDs by virtually every competitor on IMG’s World’s Strongest Man. It has been this way for decades

In a story ESPN.com published April 14, 2019, former IMG “World’s Strongest Man" Champion Hafthor Bjornsson is asked about his steroid use. Here is an excerpt from that article:

"In a lengthy interview with ESPN's E:60, Bjornsson was asked whether he had ever taken steroids, long associated with the sport of strongman. ”Yes, I have," Bjornsson says in the 2017 interview, which aired Sunday morning on E:60. "When you want to be the best, you do whatever it takes."

Bjornsson did not elaborate on when he has used performance-enhancing drugs. Asked how often he takes steroids and if he's still doing it, Bjornsson deferred: "Can we just skip those questions?"

In a 2020 interview on the national podcast giant Joe Rogan, current World’s Strongest Man competitor Rob Kearney openly admitted IMG does not take drug testing for steroids seriously at all.

Kearney told Rogan that as far as he knew, IMG (referring it as WSM) has never disqualified a competitor for any illegal drug.

Kearney and Rogan even joked that the Americans have “better steroids” than the Europeans right now.

Virtually every “World’s Strongest Man” competitor is ingesting steroids. It is just accepted as fact.

Steroids are “long associated with the sport of strongman,” as ESPN put it.

Steroid use by competitors on “World’s Strongest Man” has been the main argument I have made to the Myrtle Beach, SC Chamber of Commerce to cancel the competition ever since I learned IMG had booked it at the popular family beach front community.

I traveled to Myrtle Beach in March 2023 to talk to young people as well as leaders of the area concerning the dangers of steroid use. I told them it was my belief they "World's Strongest Man" competitors were abusing themselves with steroids to compete on TV for a few minutes and for very little money overall. I have told people that competitors at WSM were victims of the lie that they would become rich and famous if they'd "do what they need to do" to compete on WSM.

 

My registered nonprofit is called “Protect Our Youth from Steroids,” POYS for short. The mission is to call out those individuals and organizations that promote and glorify steroid use.

On March 7, I spoke to over 600 high school students at a Horry County, SC public school as well as a Northern Myrtle Beach Rotary Club about the dangers of using steroids as well as flagging those individuals and organizations that promote and glorify steroid use.

I also made stops at places like Myrtle Beach City Hall, City Services and the Myrtle Beach Police Station.

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s annual strength and bodybuilding events in Columbus, OH and the IMG “World’s Strongest Man” competition dominated my presentation.  

Not one person: Students, coaches, local citizens or law enforcement disagreed with my message. There had to be 800-900 people I spoke to in person over my two-day stay.

Which makes the final scene of a very recent segment on HBO’s “Real Sports” about IMG’s “World’s Strongest Man” covered by Hall of Fame announcer Mary Carillo and Emmy award-winning host Bryant Gumbel seem so disturbing.     

THERE HAVE BEEN SEVERAL FATALITIES ON COMPETITORS ON IMG’S WORLD’S STRONGEST MAN AND ITS QUALIFIERS OVER THE YEARS  

After the sudden death of Arnold strongman champion and 3X “World’s Strongest Man” finalist Mike Jenkins died of a massive heart episode on Thanksgiving Day 2013, Dauphin (PA) county coroner Graham Hetrick certified on Mike’s death certificate that the 31-year former college football offensive lineman had poisoned himself to death from steroid use.

During my interview with Hetrick in May 2014, I showed the coroner the 2014 resolution passed unanimously by the Pennsylvania House of Representatives rebuking “World’s Strongest Man” and other strength competitions for their lack of testing for steroids, rampant steroid use and high fatality rate.

The coroner had this to say about those strongman federations:

“It’s certain that long term use of steroids is going to injure the body,” Hetrick told POYS. “And if it’s certain and you’re encouraging people to do it, it’s no different than someone standing on a street corner and selling illicit drugs…and we put them in jail. It’s the same potential, you know you are distributing something that is going to do them great harm.”

Hetrick said the allure of movie stardom enjoyed by steroid-fueled actors such as Schwarzenegger, Dwayne Johnson and Sylvester Stallone, is the carrot that drives many people towards the “Dark Side,” a common term used by steroid users to describe those who have taken the plunge.

“Fame is the aphrodisiac for this whole thing,” Hetrick said.  

There are qualifiers for “World’s Strongest Man” and the equally condemned “Arnold Strongman Classic” in almost every state in America.

These qualifiers are where I believe young people are first introduced to the “Dark Side” of steroids.    

On virtually every forum and message board that exists on Earth to talk about IMG’s “World’s Strongest Man,” fans have conceded steroid use is rampant and accepted.

Unfortunately, so have the fatalities.

WHY DID HBO DO THIS FEATURE ON THE LUKE AND TOM STOLTMAN?

I have been sending information about steroid use on WSM to Karen Riordan - President and CEO, Visit Myrtle Beach for months.

On December, 21, 2022, I received this reply from Karen.

"Thank you for the information. I will review over the holiday break with my team.

Happy holidays,

Karen"      

Was she going to seriously consider canceling the event to shield the youth of her community from the steroid culture WSM would surely be bringing with it? That is an unanswered question at this point since she never got back to me. We did have a lengthy phone call about the steroid issues with IMG’s “World’s Strongest Man” right before I started to send the information.

Since November 2022, I have written the athletic directors and other school officials at no less than 25 Horry County area high schools about the WSM event and the dangers of steroid use.      

There is no doubt POYS had created a buzz in the area about pushing back on what I call “Steroid Nation.”

Which is why the question-and-answer period after a segment on two brothers who are competitors on IMG’s “World’s Strongest Man” between Bryant Gumbel and Mary Carillo seemed so suspicious and conflicted.

The March 2023 installment of HBO’s “Real Sports” included a 15-minute segment about pro strongmen Luke and Tom Stoltman.

It is a touching story of the two brothers growing up in Scotland, how Tom came to come to grips with autism and how the two became so successful in the world of pro strongman.

Tom is the two-time reigning “World’s Strongest Man” champion and is expected to defend his title in Myrtle Beach April 19-23, 2023.

During the “Real Sports” segment, producer Nisreen Habbal and Carillo failed to broach the subject of steroids at all.

But it became obvious this was a fluff piece done on behalf of IMG by Carillo to try and mend its all but faded credibility as a real athletic event. Steroids are such a part of IMG’s “World’s Strongest Man” that, as someone who has covered professional sports for over 35 years, there is no corner of main stream sports that takes WSM seriously anymore. At least those are my experiences.  

There is nothing sinister with HBO airing this show the month before the competition is to take place. What is suspicious is that an Emmy Award winning, Hall of Fame journalist like Carillo - who has a longtime relationship with IMG - appears to blatantly lie to Gumbel and to the HBO audience when an awkward-looking Gumbel asks her about size of the two men – Tom is over 400 pounds and Luke is almost as big – and asks Carillo, “are these guys tested for ‘roids?”

In a fashion that would make the most deceitful politician in America blush, the 66-year-old former professional tennis player replied, “There is drug testing in this world,” Carillo said with a face a psychologist who specializes in lying should look at. “They claim they’ve never failed a test. They claim they play clean.”

Huh?

Maybe, Carillo should consider that these two have likely NEVER BEEN TESTED FOR STEROIDS!

How can they fail a test if they are never tested? Why did the four-time, Emmy Award-winning Gumbel not push back on that ridiculous answer?

It appears THE FIX was in. This has all the earmarks of a planted story to benefit her friends at IMG and try to save a failing steroid-infested event that no one cares about anymore except STEROID NATION and those who want to sell steroids to young people.

Is IMG’s “World’s Strongest Man” nothing more than an elaborate advertisement to market steroid sale by god knows who?   

Is Carillo an IMG asset? It sure appears so. The former pro tennis player and tennis analyst has a long association with IMG…a fact she or “Real Sports” never disclosed. 

Did a lawyer for HBO or IMG write her response of “There’s drug testing in this world?”

The timing is interesting since IMG is facing a crossroads with the show.

Will CBS Sports Network want to carry this show anymore now that IMG appears to be running out of third world countries or American towns to scam tourism (taxpayer) funding out of?

STEROIDS ARE HARMFUL TO INGEST FOR ATHLETICS UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCE – IS SOMEONE WHO HAS AUTISM AT AN EVEN GREATER RISK?

This is where Carillo and Gumbel are exposed as assets for IMG and not legitimate journalists covering a topic.

When Carillo, Habbal and “Real Sports” producers Josh Fine and Stephen Lorenzo made a decision to make this piece center around Tom Stoltman’s lifelong challenges with autism, in my opinion, one of the first things they should have investigated was what further health risks a 400-pound man with autism could face if he is ingesting vast amounts of anabolic steroids and other PEDs professional strongmen have been known to abuse themselves with in order to chase the lie they will achieve fame and fortune if they cross over to the “Dark Side” to compete at this level.

One of the more disturbing results from Hetrick’s extended autopsy of Jenkins is heartbreaking. Hetrick revealed Jenkins had been ingesting steroids meant for large animals.

Jenkins had apparently contacted veterinarians and convinced them to sell him these drugs.

Someone in the “Strongman World” – as Carillo put it – told Jenkins this was a good idea.

Is this the world the Stoltman brothers are getting their medical information? Let us hope not.  

But Carillo and the producers really could not travel down that rabbit hole could they?

They’d have to admit the competitors are all likely violating our drug laws in order to compete at WSM.

That would be actual, legitimate journalism and not a favor to IMG. But Carillo and HBO apparently chose to pander to their ally, rather then give important medical information to their viewers.  

Even if someone with autism ingesting steroids is no more a risk than anyone else taking steroids, in my opinion, it should be addressed.

One doctor I spoke to – who is not in the field of autism treatment – did say it would be “common sense” that an autistic person's health risks are greater than a non-autistic competitor who is ingesting steroids. Reminder...ingesting steroids for athletic competition is dangerous for anyone...and it is illegal  

According the Kearney, in his interview with Rogan, “World’s Strongest Man” competitors are sent a booklet of questions and requirements the competitor’s physician must fill out at the competitor’s expense.

I asked Karen if she knew whether IMG or her department was vetting these doctors hired by the approximately 25 foreigners who plan to gain work visas to compete in Myrtle Beach in April.

I have not heard back.

I have left several voice mails for Lorenzo to comment on this story on his extension at HBO headquarters in New York City.

POYS has reached to a number of autism foundations and autism medical facilities and will add their responses to the story as they come in.

Is this a fire-able offense by Mary Carillo? I think so…judge for yourself. *

 

Email Al Thompson at protectouryouthfromsteroids@aol.com.