Untold Hall of Shame is part of Volume 3 of the acclaimed docuseries, a four-week summer event that pulls back the curtain on epic tales from the wide and wild world of sports. The documentary film is directed by Bryan Storkel and has a runtime of about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
The film features interviews with several of Conte’s notable former associates including Tim Montgomery and the anti-doping and IRS authorities like Jeff Novitzky, Oliver Catlin, Journalist Cheryl Hurd and Conte’s youngest daughter Veronica Schumacher.
Untold Hall of Shame Review
Victor Conte’s name is synonymous with the biggest doping scandal ever to rock the sports community, ensnaring top athletes such as baseball great Barry Bonds and track-and-field legends Marion Jones and Tim Montgomery. For 16 years, Conte swears BALCO Laboratories, his supplement and nutrition company based in the Bay Area, never dabbled in illegal, performance-enhancing drugs. But by 2000, he went to the dark side and became the go-to guy for athletes in search of steroids, fame, and world records.
However, Conte insists till the end that he didn’t administer any steroids to the athletes he worked with. Rather tried to help them become a better version of themselves, through custom training and supplements that he formulated looking at individual blood works. However, a big question mark hovers throughout whether he is telling the truth or trying to stay clean from any further controversies.
The con man often comes up when the IRS agent talks about Conte and his ways. But one thing is clear, the man knew what he was doing and allegedly found creative ways to find the loopholes in the system. Even though he blatantly denies steroid claims with some evidence in his hands, his strategy did help his athletes in some way and questions the line between the effective use and abuse of drugs.
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While big names like Barry Bonds and Marion Jones refused to be a part of the documentary, Tim Montgomery does share his experience working with the BALCO Laboratories creator. His story makes one think about how bad company hampered his world record that he broke despite not being supported by Conte, at that time. It definitely remains a regretful decision for him but also shows how Conte’s assumingly increasing greed would have eventually caught him, if not for the IRS agent stealing his trash.
The decision lies in the hands of the viewers to believe what they want, whether to support Conte’s creative hustle or brand him a con man finding his footing on the dark side. It does make one think if the current top athletes have found a way to enhance their performance with some or other drug or simply rely on their raw power. Time and time again we might be seeing similar cases coming up unless they are careful enough to not throw clear evidence in their trash.
Rating: 3/5
Untold Hall of Shame is currently available for streaming on Netflix.
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