These may be controversial statements, but they are not the views of a rebellious coach, a disillusioned competitor, or even the doctors some sports fans believe are destroying the purity of competition.

They are the considered thoughts of a British professor of philosophy, Simon Eassom, from De Montfort University in Bedford who suggests that athletes might someday run on artificial hearts.

Syringe today, surgery tomorrow?

Alternatively an Olympic marksman could use a transplanted cornea for better vision, and surgically altered nerves for a steadier trigger finger.

"The future of sports as we know it, the future of the Olympic Games, is by no means certain," the professor said.

He was speaking at the 1998 World Congress of Philosophy in Boston, USA, where his work in the obscure field of athletics and philosophy is on display.

Another philosophy professor, Norwegian Sigmund Loland said it is not far fetched to picture a future of cyborg athletes - part human, part mechanical.

Luke Skywalker's artificial hand may be copied by future sports stars

For example, a baseball pitcher might trade in his mortal arm for a faster machine version just like Luke Skywalker, the hero from Star Wars who had a mechanical hand.

The philosophising comes at a timely moment in world sport, following a series of embarrassing disclosures and allegations in cycling, swimming, athletics, and most recently Italian football.

The Tour de France was particularly badly hit by a police investigation into the blood thickener EPO, which some international cyclists have recently admitted to taking

There have been high profile positive tests in athletics for Americans Dennis Mitchell and Randy Barnes, and in swimming where Irish Olympic gold medallist Michelle de Bruin is vowing to contest a ban.

It has all led to an International Olympic Committee meeting this week to discuss a way forward, and the IOC president has even opened a debate over whether certain substances should be allowed provided they do not damage health.

Prof Eassom says the lengths to which some athletes will go suggest that there is plenty of scope for developing the 'perfect' human body.

For example, some steroid users have undergone dialysis to cleanse their blood in advance of drug tests.

"If athletes are prepared to go to those sort of lengths it would kind of make sense that they would be prepared to go to the length of putting an artificial heart valve in them to make their blood pump better," said the professor.

Sports philosophy is all a far cry from Plato

And he does not believe the public would reject such competitors as cheats.

"There will be an element of a circus atmosphere - 'Oh let's go see the freak play.' But that will soon become commonplace," he said.

"It's mass entertainment, and provided there are still the elements of suspense, drama and excitement, people are still going to watch it."

The point may be backed up by recent experience in the Tour de France, where despite police raids and media coverage which concentrated heavily on drugs, the crowds for the racing were as high as ever.

Many fans actually told reporters that they would have been amazed if a human being could cycle 2,500 miles in three weeks without unconventional medical help.

What sort of creatures will line up for the 100m in years to come?

Their enthusiasm for the riders' efforts was undiminished and even those who condemned the practice, blamed the teams and their doctors for making unreasonable demands.

In fact the Norwegian professor warns that the presence of money is an important factor, particularly in sports where improving world records are all important.

"We're looking at quite a drastic scenario," said Prof Loland.