Shelby Houlihan Is Ruffling Feathers During Her Doping Ban

When it comes to sports controversies, beer mile competitions aren’t usually the first thing that springs to mind. Unless you’re a neo-prohibitionist, the spectacle of seeing a bunch of loonies chugging beers and running laps around a track is unlikely to offend your sense of decency. However, the Beer Mile World Classic earlier this month ended up evoking strong feelings among participants and fans alike for allowing the suspended world-class miler Shelby Houlihan to take part. Houlihan is roughly two and a half years into a four-year ban for testing positive for the banned steroid nandrolone—a violation she has famously attributed to a bad burrito—but the terms of her suspension only apply to official USATF and World Athletics-sanctioned events. Since the Beer Mile World Classic doesn’t fall under this jurisdiction, it was up to event organizers to figure out what to do when the American record-holder in the 1,500-meters expressed an interest in competing. In the end, the World Classic decided that Houlihan would not be allowed to take part in the women’s championships, but that she could still run in…