This Olympic coach agreed to talk to The Seattle Times only on the condition of anonymity. He gives us an inside look at performance enhancement in the Olympic world.

"The topic itself is the ring of silence.

"We live in denial that the sport is an amateur thing. And it's never going to be like that. So stop claiming that it is.

"Sport is not fair. It's not that way. Athletes have different talents, different genetic codes. They use different equipment. They use coaches with different backgrounds and different resources. They live in countries with different standards. Some places cannot afford food. Some places cannot afford shoes. Some places the coach doesn't know [anything].

"We cannot stop the progress of technology. We cannot stop the progress of science. And, at the same time, you want them to go faster and faster and faster. So you're putting them in extreme environments and all the tools are available around them. You want to limit that. But you cannot.

"Everyone knows. Even the people who chase the drugs, even they're going to admit it. Everyone in the field of sports is going to admit that the drugs themselves are not going to make you champions.

"We're living in denial. The simple denial is: [Drugs] are part of the game, they exist. Screw it. So let's talk about it. Let's talk about what we can take, how far we can go, what we shouldn't take. At some point, you enter it at your own risk.

"You have to separate that athletes are not conventional people. You have to get to the point where it's open and admitted — it's there, it's going to be there, it's part of the game — let's try and cultivate that and make it more safe, more stable and open to discussion.

"The world is not fair, and it's not heaven. So we shouldn't pretend that sport is heaven."