"The world's Olympic athletes weren't subjected to the usual rigorous anti-doping regime over the 16-month period before the Tokyo Games, which open tomorrow, Axios' Erin Doherty writes.

For three months early in the pandemic, virtually all drug-testing programs were suspended. That may have opened the door for athletes to use performance-enhancing drugs, AP notes.
There was a 45% reduction in testing globally in 2020 compared with 2019, according to the World Anti-Doping Agency.

"Unless you're a fool, you'd have to be concerned," said Travis Tygart, CEO of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.
Between the lines: Track and field has seen a slew of personal bests in addition to NCAA, national and even world records over the past year-plus." Axios

Jamaican sprinter Ben Johnson just had bad timing.

"Axios' Ina Fried reports from Tokyo ... Athletes at the opening ceremony were clearly visible on TV with masks below their noses, but an athlete tells Axios that the COVID rule-breaking was going on well before that.

It's been happening at least since athletes arrived in the Olympic Village, where masks were dropped below noses and different teams were forced to share buses.
Even the official plan includes risks via both flights to Tokyo and shared dining facilities, where people of course are unmasked.
Why it matters: Organizers insist the Games can be safe for both the athletes and the people of Japan. But fear persists among athletes, in part because the precautions are both insufficient and not always followed.

Journalists, who've also been known to drop their masks, crowd onto official buses to get from one approved location to another. Several told me they think there could be a significant outbreak." Axios

That sounds ... concerning. There were dozens of US athletes who opted not to get vaccinated as well. Welp. Track starts Thursday so hopefully it's a good show.

Camryn Rogers sitting in 3rd place(74.35) with 3 throws left!

Finishes in 5th place.

Congrats Camryn and Mo!

If Cal was a country, we’d have the 18th-most medals at the #Olympics pic.twitter.com/jn1CL2oesE

— Cal Athletics (@CalAthletics) August 9, 2021