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The man behind the scheme, who masterminded a plan to supply stealthy banned substances to professional athletes such as MLB legends Giambi and Bonds and track and field star Marion Jones years back, is deceased. He was 75.

Federal Investigation and Convictions

The federal government's investigation into a separate firm established by Conte, Balco, led to the criminal findings of Jones, top track cyclist Thomas, and ex-pro football defender Stubblefield, in addition to trainers, suppliers, chemists, attorneys, and coaches.

Conte's Admissions and Prison Time

He, who served several months in a penitentiary for illegal drug sales, discussed frankly about his well-known clients. He appeared on TV to state he had observed decorated Olympian Jones self-administer with growth hormones, but never directly pointing the finger at Barry Bonds, the baseball star.

The Mitchell Report

The federal case inspired the publication Game of Shadows. Just days following the book's publication in 2006, baseball Commissioner Bud Selig brought on ex-senator Mitchell to investigate steroids.

Conte stated he distributed steroids referred to as two specific substances and coached on their application to many elite athletes, such as Jason Giambi, a five-time major league All-Star, according to the report.

“The illegal use of performance-enhancing substances represents a major risk to the fairness of the sport,” the report stated. “Prevalent consumption by competitors of these compounds puts at a disadvantage the those who refuse to cheat who refuse to use them and leads to skepticism about the legitimacy of historical stats.”

Mitchell indicated the problems didn’t develop overnight. He said each participant in the sport in the prior two decades – encompassing leaders, team executives, the union and athletes themselves – were partly accountable for what he termed “the steroids era”.

Case Inception

The government's case into the company was initiated by a IRS investigator digging through the business refuse. Conte eventually confessed to a pair of the 42 charges filed against him in that year prior to court proceedings. Several of the defendants sentenced were convicted for deceiving grand jurors.

Further Legal Actions

Bonds’ personal trainer Greg Anderson, confessed to steroid distribution charges arising from his involvement with Balco. The court gave him to a quarter year in jail and the same duration of house arrest.

Bonds' Legal Battles

The baseball legend was accused of lying to a grand jury about obtaining banned substances and went on trial in the early 2010s. The government abandoned his case four years later when the authorities chose not to appeal an overturned ruling to the supreme court.

A decorated player and frequent All-Star, he ended his career after the that season with 762 home runs, breaking the mark of 755 that Aaron established from 1954-76. The athlete refuted consciously consuming PEDs but has failed to gain entry to the sport's hall of honor.

Later Years

The former convict stated in an interview in a 2010 discussion that “yes, athletes cheat to succeed, but the government agents and prosecutors also bend the rules.” He also questioned whether the results in such proceedings were worth the resources.

After serving his sentence, he got back in business in 2007 by rebooting a supplements company he had started two decades earlier called Scientific Nutrition for Advanced Conditioning or SNAC System. He operated in the very same place that once housed his former lab in Burlingame, California.

Unapologetic Views

The controversial figure continued to justify about his central role in providing tailored drugs to top sports stars. He argued he simply helped “even the competition” in a sports environment teeming with rule-breakers.

Outside Views

To a WADA member, a former participant of the WADA, Conte could be compared to selling illegal narcotics. “This involves blatant drug dealing. You are talking about using drugs in violation of federal law,” the doctor remarked in that period. “It's not a good deed and not a benevolent act. It's illegal sales.”