Legal medical marijuana user barred from regatta

Irvin Rosenfeld, one of the 7 people supplied marijuana by the US government, expects to be barred from participating in "one of the nation's top sailing events for the disabled."

Rosenfeld, who has sailed in three races of the North American Challenge Cup in 11 years, has asked the race's organizers and the U.S. Sailing Association to overrule the United States Anti-Doping Agency and let him sail in the 2006 regatta. He said an event that celebrates overcoming disabilities is in effect discriminating against a disabled person.

The USADA, the official anti-doping agency for Olympic, Pan American and Paralympic sports, gave no reason for its rejection, Rosenfeld said in a Friday e-mail to the sailing officials.

There's clearly a procedure for issuing an exemption and Rosenfeld appears to qualify for it. As he points out, most of the disabled atheletes take medications and although WADA bans cannabis out of hand, he is taking the herb as a government allowed medicine.

Fortunately he has until 2006 to solve this dilemma. Perhaps some civic minded ADA attorneys will offer their services in the interim.