Toking and Sporting have had a tumultuous relationship for years. Most sports organisations group the herbs with hard drugs like cocaine, ecstasy and heroin. While most countries and governments are stuck seesawing between legalization and prohibition, the same exists for sporting authorities. Many sports people have admitted to unwinding and calming their body down with herbs and have claimed that it helps with pain management and inflammation in their joints (no pun intended!).
In the two decades since the NBA and its players’ union agreed to begin testing for the plant, perceptions across the US have changed and the legalization wave has picked up. Researchers don’t fully understand its medical benefits or harmful effects but earlier this year, the NBA announced that they would not be testing players for the herbs during the regular season.
Other authorities might be accepting things more slowly, but that doesn’t mean athletes themselves don’t love the herbs. So here’s a list of famous sportspeople who have shown a love for the greens.
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Michael Phelps:
The Olympic-winning swimmer was in hot water, not just of the bong variety, in 2009 when he was caught on video smoking a bong. This stirred quite the controversy back in the day and possibly would be viewed differently today. The incident happened three months after the Olympics and was probably just Phelps unwinding post-games.
Sadly, the incident lost him a kids’ cereal brand sponsorship and many of his critics ignorantly equated the incident with his previous DUI arrest. Either way, it debunks the myths that smoking the herbs always damages lung capacity.
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Rohan Marley
The son of the legendary Bob Marley, Rohan Marley had a successful career playing professionally as a linebacker in Canada for the CFL’s Ottawa Rough Riders. During his time at the University of Miami, he played for the school’s team, The Miami Hurricanes.
Today, Rohan’s son, Nico Marley, carries the torch on while Rohan gives him pep talks for his football games. But off the field, Rohan Marley leads a cannabis brand/movement called Lion Order. The brand is at the intersection of Rastafari values, premium Marley herbs and strong business ethics, continuing to make many popular strains from King Clementine to Roadblock.
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Sha’Carri Richardson
Richardson rose to fame in 2019 when she ran the 100m in 10.75 seconds becoming one of the ten fastest women in history at just 19 years of age. She rose to popularity because of her unique appearance with her long and stylish nails.
However, she was suspended for a month from the 2021 Tokyo Olympics after she tested positive for THC and she couldn’t represent the US in any track events. In an interview, Richardson opened up about her intake as a way to cope with her biological mother’s recent death and the stress of Olympic trials. Many critics questioned the decision by the United States Anti-Doping Agency and whether the policies are outdated and archaic. US President Joe Biden also suggested that drug-testing rules governing athletes could change.
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Al Harrington
Former NBA Superstar, Al Harrington has been a noted cannabis advocate post-retirement in 2015. Alongwith Allen Iverson, Harrington started the cannabis company, Viola, named after his grandmother who was brought to tears by the benefits that cannabis provided her. The business finds a way to reinvest in local communities and create opportunities for those in need.
Harrington has notably talked about the demonization of the plant being unnecessary and admitted that most of the NBA smokes- the players, front office members and even coaches.
“Mostly everybody is a closet smoker,” Harrington said. “All my billionaire mentors. They all consume [cannabis].”
Speaking of the NBA, the Lakers legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has opened up about the medicinal benefits cannabis has brought for his migraines. He has been caught with the herbs at an airport in Canada and charged with a DUI back in L.A. when a cop smelled greens after being pulled over for speeding. Despite the run-ins with the law, he has still remained a strong advocate.
The highest point scorer in NBA history has opened up about his frequent usage and how he chose to mostly hang out with fellow smokers when he was younger.
"I've certainly smoked more than my quota of w**d. For a while there at UCLA I didn't want to hang out with anyone who didn't smoke reefer, but that was as parochial a view of the world as any uptight antidoper's, and I got over it quickly," he wrote in his autobiography, Giant Steps.
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Connor McGregor
In terms of herbs usage, the UFC is one of the more lenient sporting leagues. They’re now only tested “in competition”, meaning players need to just ensure they’re not smoking right before fights.
The UFC’s biggest ticket, Connor McGregor, is quite public with his smoking, often seen toking on his Instagram page and has also been spotted in an Amsterdam cannabis cafe. The UFC champion also has his own line of cannabis-based recovery products called TIDL Sport, including CBD oils and creams.
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Marshawn Lynch
Former NFL running back, Marshawn Lynch, sees cannabis politically as well. Lynch runs a cannabis brand called Dodi Blunts, and sells pre-rolls in California. He aims to make diversity a priority by hiring and promoting people of color. He has talked about how the cannabis industry has the ability to raise up Black and Brown communities.
There have been a fair share of sportspeople who have advocated, either strongly or through their usage, for the herbs to be more accepted either as pain relief, stress relief or a coping mechanism. And as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar said, there might be more players who unwind with toking than we know! The myth that toking depletes overall health is worth looking into. We recommend you do your research if you’re a casual sports person who loves unwinding with a toke. But if you need any goodies to get started, Jonnybaba Lifestyle has you covered!
Tags: 420 community, 420 lifestyle, 420 products, Sports, Tokes, Smokes, Athletes, NBA, UFC, Olympics, THC, Canna, Jb fam, Jb recommends
