WATCH: Snoop Dogg thinks athletes should use cannabis over opioids

In an interview with Jimmy Kimmel Live! Snoop Dogg said sports leagues should stop testing players for marijuana. The rapper, actor and cannabis activist said they should instead allow athletes to use cannabis for therapeutic purposes as an alternative to opioids and other drugs.

The issue of cannabis use among athletes has been a hot topic in recent months as Sha’Carri Richardson was suspended from the Tokyo Olympics for testing positive for cannabis use. Richardson, who had qualified for the events and was an exciting prospect for Team USA, had to abandon the competition.

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Snoop was interviewed by sports commentator and fill-in host Stephen A. Smith on Monday. Smith asked Snoop if he thought athletes should avoid cannabis use in order to earn penalties and lose money. Snoop gave a thoughtful response, agreeing with Smith on some aspects but differing on others.

“Well I agree with your position when it comes to the athletes who have commissioners and rules and regulations and tests and things to deal with in their job that could prevent them from getting their money, ”said he. “When I talk to entertainers and people like me now, we don’t have a commissioner, we don’t get any of it. Athletes can hang out with the rappers, but you can’t do what the rappers do because the rapper has no consequences for what he does. “

Snoop then suggested that sports leagues should relax their marijuana guidelines, especially since athletes often have opioid problems. “These athletes take these pills and get addicted to these pills and it still doesn’t give them the relief they need, what the pain or whatever they are going through,” he said.

“Through the CBD, through the THC, through the marijuana, through the cannabis, they can find relaxation and receive the medical treatment they deserve – without having these side effects later on – so I encourage that in sport.”

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Cannabis use in sports has long been a controversial issue, especially in recent years as the drug has been legalized across the country. Richardson’s case has sparked sympathy from entertainers like Snoop Dogg and Seth Rogen to more conservative institutions like the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency.

Richarson said she hopes her suspension can make a change, possibly a change in international guidelines on athletes and cannabis use.