STD Testing Info

Early November marked the 10-year anniversary of Magic Johnson’s formal announcement that he had contracted HIV and would retire from the Los Angeles Lakers in the prime of his career. The announcment stunned the sports world.

In discussing how he got the virus, Johnson said, “Sometimes you are a little naive and think it can never happen to you. You think it can only happen to other people. Well here I am to say it can happen to anyone, even me, Magic Johnson.”

Since then, Johnson has participated in several programs to raise awareness of the disease in sports and society, but have his efforts made a difference?

While few statistics exist gauging the impact on sports, anecdotal evidence would indicate that his influence has been limited.

For example, the high-profile Gold Club (a strip bar in Atlanta) trial last summer showed that many professional athletes continue to succumb to sexual temptation despite the increased risk of disease.

Not confined to basketball, stars from the National Football League and Major League Baseball are alleged to have frequently engaged in sexual activity while visiting the bar according to court records. Among the athletes who appeared, or were scheduled to appear, as witnesses at the trial were Andruw Jones, Terrell Davis, Jamal Anderson and Patrick Ewing.

The list of athletes who have contracted HIV or died of AIDS since the Johnson announcement represent a broad spectrum of sports, ages and races. Some of the more prominent are Arthur Ashe, Greg Louganis and Tommy Morrison.

In a recent interview with ESPN, Indiana Pacers Head Coach Isiah Thomas, attempting to explain Magic’s limited impact, said, “I think the first month or two Earvin came out — just probably like every other athlete, thinking that it couldn’t happen then and then it happens to the greatest player to play the game — everyone focused on being more careful. But, watching a lot of the guys that come up in the league now, it is almost back to 15, 20 years ago.”

The growing paternity problems faced by many pro athletes further suggest that messages promoting HIV/AIDS awareness are falling on deaf ears. In a 1997 Sports Illustrated investigation, many examples of athletes with numerous illegitimate children were cited to illustrate this trend. Perhaps the most notorious player was the NBA’s Shawn Kemp, who at the time had seven children with six different women.

In addition to these examples, national data reveals that society’s reaction to the illness parallels the pattern evident in sports. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, the number of reported AIDS cases in the United States actually increased from 41,502 in 1990 (the year prior to Johnson’s announcement) to 70,715 in 1995. By 1999, the number of cases had decreased back down to 41,680.

Even when taking into account the population growth the nation has experienced in the last 10 years, the data at best show little change in the spread of HIV/AIDS over the past decade. In fact, the decrease in reported cases of AIDS in 1999 can probably be attributed more to medical advancements than a shift in people’s behavior. Thus, the world of sports — rather than being an aberration — seems to simply mirror the lack of change in society since Johnson’s revelation.

In an ironic twist, part of the minimal impact of Johnson’s message may lie in his ability to thrive in life after obtaining HIV. Specifically, he has yet to develop AIDS, is bulkier than he was when first retiring, has come back to the NBA twice and has built a powerful business empire to match his success on the court.

Another contributing factor to the lack of response among athletes may be the lower rates at which heterosexual men contract the disease. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that just 15 percent of men who have HIV/AIDS in the United States received the disease through heterosexual intercourse. In fact, some studies find that women are 20 times more likely to become infected when engaging in unprotected sex than men.

As a result, many heterosexual athletes may have a false sense of security when having unprotected sex. They shouldn’t though, because the CDC also reports that 80 percent of cases worldwide are transmitted through heterosexual sex.

Despite these obstacles, Johnson has certainly succeeded in raising awareness of HIV/AIDS among sports leagues. For example, the NFL, MLB and NBA all have implemented formal programs to increase knowledge about the dangers of the disease.

The leagues have also adopted policies to reduce the risk of transmission during athletic competition. Research from the University of Alberta Health Center has found that the risk of transmission is infinitesimally small during competition. Since 1993, only one documented case has occurred during an athletic event, when two soccer players smashed heads during a game.

Nonetheless, HIV/AIDS remains a large problem both off the court and off the field. As a result, Johnson has a lot of work ahead of him. Fortunately, he shows no signs of slowing down in his crusade to prevent the spread of this tragic disease.