Sports stars getting caught for doping up is nothing new, but is it really considered such a big taboo especially when these drugs allow them to perform such amazing feats?

This issue was highlighted by Malcolm Gladwell after reviewing two recently published books – 'The Sports Gene' by David Epstein which is about the genetic and phenotypic gifts of elite athletes; and 'The Secret Race' by Tyler Hamilton, about the widespread use of performance enhancing drugs among Tour de France cyclists.

The first book highlights on how nature gives some athletes an unfair advantage, while the second book reveals how technology has consistently provided athletes with an ever-increasing competitive advantage, enabling participants in many sport to reach new heights of athletic excellence.  So if science has the power to elevate athletes to an unprecedented plane of performance, why don't we allow it? As Gladwell laments:
We want sports to be fair and we take elaborate measures to make sure that no one competitor has an advantage over any other. But how can a fantastic menagerie ever be a contest among equals?
Read the rest of this fascinating review over at The New Yorker