The government of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) conducted a decades-long program of coercive administration and distribution of performance-enhancing drugs, initially testosterone, later mainly anabolic drugs, to its elite athletes. The aim of the program, which began in the 1960s, was to bolster East Germany's state image and prestige by winning medals in international competition such as the Olympic Games.
The system was extremely formalised and heavily based on secrecy. On a performance level, the system was successful; East German athletes were part of the country's elite and the GDR achieved numerous successes. However, the doping system negatively affected the health of numerous athletes over time.
History
Sports as a tool to gain legitimacy
After the building of the Berlin Wall, the East German government wanted to gain international recognition. High-level sports was targeted by as a possible tool to achieve it. Manfred Ewald, who became minister of Sports in 1961, initiated the doping system. The first and major sports reform adopted by the government was the 1969 high-performance directive called Leistungssportbeschluss. The aim of the reform was the division of disciplines into two main categories, Sport 1 and Sport 2. Disciplines stamped Sport 1 were supported and developed by the state because such sports, including swimming, rowing, and track and field, had the potential for Olympic glory. Disciplines stamped Sport 2 on the other hand held no particular interest in the eyes of the state. Indeed, sports like karate offered no potential for Olympic glory, and many suffered from the directive as resources were shifted away to finance Sport 1 disciplines.
The GDR made huge efforts to identify talented athletes. Most children competed in youth sport centers and were scouted by the government; the best prospects were selected for intense Olympic training. These children were expected to deliver great victories, and the state was willing to use any means at its disposal to ensure such outcomes. Advances in medicine and science led to widespread use of steroids, amphetamines, human growth hormones and blood boosting behind the scenes in training centers for professional athletes. The Sportvereinigung Dynamo (English: Sport Club Dynamo) was particularly singled out as a center for doping in East Germany.
The 1970s marked the formalisation of the doping system. Although various performance-enhancing drugs became available in 1966 for male athletes and 1968 for females, formalisation occurred after the remarkable performance of East Germany in the 1972 Summer Olympics, in which the GDR placed third in the medal rankings. Thanks to its strengthened doping program, the East German state was able to claim that a country of merely 17–18 million had managed to defeat world powers through talent and hard work.
After 1972, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) improved doping detection. As a result, in 1974, the East German state created the , also known as the "uM group". Working with cutting-edge research, uM's goals were to improve the effects of doping and prevent any exposure of doping. Anabolic drugs became commonly available and East German athletes began consuming them frequently. Predominant amongst these drugs were anabolic-androgenic steroids, such as Oral Turinabol, which was produced by state-owned pharmaceuticals firm Jenapharm.
In the following years, the country managed to assert dominance over different disciplines, and multiple records were set by East German athletes. The 1980s gradually brought a climate of suspicion around the athletes. The IOC, which had begun to have doubts over their performance, reinforced doping controls as suspicion grew ever stronger. However, its investigations were severely hampered by a lack of tools and expertise.
The East German doping system ended in the 1990s with the fall of the Berlin Wall. Multiple athletes and individuals came forward with information on the doping system, and a series of trials were held for the principle figures involved. Approximately 1,000 people were invited to testify in the trials, and 300 did so.
Systematic state doping
Jean-Pierre de Mondenard, an expert in performance-enhancing drugs, contended that while doping existed in other countries, both communist and capitalist, the difference in East Germany was that it represented state policy.