Pope to athletes: Respect your bodies

Benedict said Monday that sports, when done with passion, can help develop ethics and a taste for "healthy competitiveness."

But he said during an audience at the Vatican with a group of ski instructors that an athlete's body "cannot be considered an object" or be "worshipped."

Instead, it should be respected and not treated like a "tool to be strengthened at all costs, maybe even using unlawful means."