Victor Conte, who sold undetectable steroids to elite athletes in baseball and track, has died at 75
Victor Conte, founder of BALCO company at centre of performance-enhancing drugs scandal, dies aged 75
- Victor Conte, the founder of the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative (BALCO) and architect of a scheme to provide undetectable performance-enhancing drugs to athletes, has died at the age of 75.
- Conte supplied steroids, known as 'the cream' and 'the clear', to numerous elite athletes, including baseball star Jason Giambi and Olympic track champion Marion Jones.
- A federal investigation into BALCO led to convictions for several individuals, including Jones, and Conte himself, who pleaded guilty to charges in 2005 and served four months in a minimum-security prison.
- The scandal prompted the publication of the book 'Game of Shadows' and led to baseball Commissioner Bud Selig commissioning the Mitchell report on steroid use in the sport.
- Despite breaking the all-time home run record, Barry Bonds, whose personal trainer was linked to BALCO, has never been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.