Giving anabolic steroids to a teenage girl does a whole lot more than help her win a gold medal – it can change her body forever. East German shot put champion Heidi Krieger claims she was so masculinized by the drugs her coaches gave her that she later chose to become a man, and underwent a series a sex-change operations to become Andreas Krieger.
Kreiger was among thousands of young athletes injured by an East German government plan to dominate Olympic sports through chemistry. In most cases, they were told the pills and shots they were given were vitamins and natural supplements. Their enormous physiques and aggressive behavior inspired the International Olympic Committee's first drug testing programs in the 1970s. The IOC has been playing catch-up ever since.