A four-time world champion and holder of 60 world records, weightlifter Scot Mendelson is what one might refer to as a professional badass. In December, equipped with a bench shirt, he officially pressed 1,031 pounds—besting by 83 pounds the previous world record in the 275-pound weight class. He also still holds the official RAW (no shirt, or “unassisted”) world record, with a 715-pound press in 2005.
But as impressive as these accomplishments may be, Mendelson is also setting monumental records in other arenas—he is the first professional athlete to be an open advocate of medical cannabis and willingly acknowledge his own use while performing.
“Of course, I’m not going to break out a 2-foot glass Graphix and light up in front of everyone at the stadium, but I could absolutely have it in my system while lifting,” he says. “I use medical marijuana as needed for pain.”
No one can argue that Mendelson hasn’t had his fair share of pain. In 2004, a car accident sent him to intensive care for three weeks with a fractured skull, broken ribs, broken leg and a right foot holding on only by the skin. After a dozen surgeries, his right ankle was finally removed and he was left with one leg about 2 ½ inches shorter than the other. He was also left with an addiction to Vicodin.
“I would get violently ill when I tried to stop taking it,” says Mendelson, “so I went to my doctor for help and he said ‘Oh, it’s okay, you’re injured.’ But I’m a pro athlete and a father with a future, and let me tell you, it’s not okay.”
It took him four months to wean himself off the narcotics, at which point he simply taped up his foot and started competing again. But Mendelson soon found that he had trouble focusing or even talking. “I was becoming this mean person because I was in pain all day long.”
That’s when his business partner, Drew Sanders, suggested he try cannabis. “And it took half my pain away,” Mendelson says. “When you’re at 100-percent pain all day long and then in five minutes you’re at 50-percent, that’s like being on vacation.”
As a result, Mendelson and Sanders in November opened their own dispensary, Mendica, in Sherman Oaks. Their Mendica Wellness Center combines the dispensary with F.I.T., a 6,000-sq. ft. private personal training gym. The goal is to be a one-stop shop for rehab, rebuilding, relaxation and natural pain medication. While other active pro athletes might admit they use cannabis recreationally during the off season—(e.g. Dallas Mavericks’ forward Josh Howard), or make half-hearted apologies after a possession bust (e.g. San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Tim Lincecum), Mendelson has no problem voicing his views loud and clear.
He believes cannabis has great medicinal value, but as a father of three, he doesn’t agree with complete legalization. He supports city governments cracking down on dispensaries that aren’t behaving responsibly with regard to quality and doses. He argues that the positive financial impact of controlled legalization for state and national government is just as important as the medical impact for patients. “And I believe President Obama understands that,” he says. “I think medical marijuana is here to stay.”
But part of the reason Mendelson isn’t punished for his candidness might be that he participates in a category of competition that has no testing whatsoever, including for performance-enhancing drugs—cannabis included.
Presently, not a single professional athletic association that uses drug testing is tolerant of cannabis use, regardless of the reason. The NFL tests randomly, and players who test positive are immediately subject to a four-game suspension. MLS (Major League Soccer) also has year-round testing, and penalties can range from suspension to termination of a player’s contract. The NBA and WNBA have Reasonable Cause Testing, First-Year Testing and Veteran Testing—the first offense requires entry into the league’s anti-drug program, with increasing fines and suspensions for subsequent offenses. The MLB and NHL don’t test outright for cannabis, but can if they wish, and the consequences for testing positive are similar to that of the NBA.
“It would appear that, uniformly, these leagues are totally recalcitrant on the topic of cannabis, even if the athlete is a lawful medical patient,” says Allen St. Pierre, executive director of NORML.
The extreme example, he points out, is Irvin Rosenfeld, one of the four patients in the federal government’s Compassionate IND (Investigational New Drug) program and a competitive sailor. In 2006, the United States Sailing Association would not allow Rosenfeld to compete in the North American Challenge Cup for the disabled after the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency refused to allow him an exemption.
“If someone who virtually has a gold-plated license from the DEA cannot use cannabis without violating their athletic organization’s rules, it seems like we’re probably some years away from any of the major professional leagues supporting a medical exception,” says St. Pierre.
However, he notes, perhaps they shouldn’t. For many years, it has been argued, including by NORML, that cannabis is not a performance-enhancing drug if you employ the standard criteria such as an increased metabolic output or increased oxygen levels in the blood. But researchers are starting to question if perhaps cannabis has other qualities—such as improving relaxation and focus, helping the athlete get to the point of peak performance faster and providing faster recovery rates—that might benefit athletes. If it does, the drug might be legitimately banned.
“But it would also be a pretty strong retort to those who claim cannabis has zero redeeming qualities,” says St. Pierre, referring to cannabis’ federal classification as a drug with no medical benefits.
