Four years ago former BALCO owner Victor Conte was spending time in jail for illegally distributing anabolic steroids. Today he is training top notch athletes, making music and enjoying life.
Conte celebrated his 60th birthday on July 10 with a backyard Hawaiian luau. Among those in attendance were Barry Bond former trainer Greg Anderson and Karim Mayfield, a boxer who works with Conte and is the current sparring partner of Sergio Mora for his upcoming bout against Shane Mosley.
July 10 was also the night of Nonito ?Filipino Flash? Donaire?s WBA World Super Flyweight title defense against Hernan Marquez. In preparation for the fight Donaire, trained with Conte using intermittent hypoxic training (IHT) in his leadup to the bout. IHT is a service offered by Conte and replicates the effects of living in the mountains and training at sea level, a method of training sometimes referred to as ?live high, train low?, which has proven to show positive results for athletes.
The process, in the estimation of Conte, offers similar benefits to that of erythropoietin (EPO), a blood doping agent which will raise an athletes red blood cell count.
Everyone at the party gathered around the television to watched the fight. Conte noticed that Donaire was wearing a patch on the back of his left leg endorsing SNAC (Scientific Nutrition for Advanced Conditioning: Conte?s nutrition company). Conte also noticed Donaire catching a lot of criticism from the announcers, perplexed by Donaire?s southpaw stance early in the fight. The stance was due, which Conte was aware of, to a significant hip Donaire sustained. As soon as Donaire switched his stance in the fifth round, he dominated and knocked out Marquez in the eighth
Donaire used his post-fight interview as an opportunity to wish Conte a happy birthday, something he had promised in an embrace the last time the two had met, and the everyone in the room burst with elation.
?It makes me feel good that Nonito understands the concept of forgiveness,? Conte said. ?If you were to ask if this was a friendship we have, I would say that we do.?
In reference to whether the IHT training work, Conte believes it is a definite.
?Being injured and finding the strength to dominate and have one-punch power in the eighth round is pretty impressive.?
Other high ranking athletes have come to Conte to train including undefeated Heavyweight prospect David Rodriguez and Ultimate Fighting Championship fighter Kyle Kingsbury.
Conte is grateful to everyone of the athletes he works with and he is grateful to everyone of them for giving him the opportunity.
?I am somewhat selective,? Conte said. ? Unless the athlete has the potential to compete or is an elite contender I just don?t have the time.?
Conte may be grateful to the many who have forgiven him, but is not sure about the one-year suspension given to Antonio Margarito, a subject, given Conte?s past, that he is reluctant to comment on.
?In my opinion, cheating to win is the same if you are putting performance enhancing gloves in your body or tampering with your gloves,? Conte said. ?It is a sport where the object is to inflict damage on opponents and if you make mistakes like that, you deserve to pay the consequences.?
Part of the problem, in Conte?s estimation, is the regulatory system involved in boxing, which Conte thinks, ?is not what it should be.?
In regards to the outcome of the fight, Conte sees the fight going similar Oscar De La Hoya ? Pacquiao.
?Margarito is too tall and rangy. It will be difficult for him to get off. I see a Pacquiao victory.?
Outside of sports, Conte played bass guitar with the 70′s R&B group Tower of Power. Conte?s cousin Bruce was also a member of the band. The confluence of music and sports in Conte?s life have recently led him and a few of his music friends to get together and record a song, with the tongue in check title ?BALCO Bebop?.
On August 9th, Conte attended a San Francisco Giants ? Chicago Cubs game, it was the first time he had been back to AT&T Park in seven years. Conte?s experience at the game inspired him to write the song in the spirit of baseball and healing. ?During the game that day, I got the idea to write an up-tempo, fun tune called ?BALCO Bebop? and use ?Take Me Out to the Ballgame? as a motif for a bass solo,? Conte wrote in a NY Daily News article. ?As the tune developed, I did my best to recapture the happy feeling I had at the game. I?ve also decided to dedicate the song to MLB in an effort to help create a focus of positive change. I?m convinced the time has come for baseball and other sports plagued by drug use to begin the healing process. Enough is enough. There are better uses of taxpayer dollars than funding a series of trophy hunting expeditions.?
