Athletes, long banned from consuming cannabis for reasons as varied as possible health risks, performance enhancement, and violating “the spirit of sport,” are embracing the plant for its health and wellness potential.
On Saturday, January 22, 2022, the Association for Cannabis Health and Medicine (ACHEM ) will advance cannabis integration into sports medicine by bringing together over 300 athletes, educators, coaches, students, and sports enthusiasts from across the country. ACHEM is pleased to announce that the United States Cannabis Council and the Marijuana Policy Project are title sponsors for the one-day virtual summit, which will provide a full slate of educational and informational cannabis programming curated by ACHEM and its coalition partners.
2021 sparked conversations around cannabinoids in athletics as well as frustration around the antiquated, punitive, and non-scientific regulations enforced by sports organizations. Last summer, the world watched as Sha’Carri Richardson was stripped of her position on the US Olympic Track and Field team for her use of cannabis as a tool to manage her mental health. Around that time, the world was also introduced to Mendi, a CBD brand founded by Megan Rapinoe, who announced that she uses CBD almost exclusively for mental health and pain management. The juxtaposition of these two stories clearly illustrates an exigency for a shift in sports medicine and sports governance.