Justin Gatlin failed drug test in April

http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/trackandfield/news/story?id=2533757


The fastest man alive :

 

Well, one thing's for sure. Gatlin and Landis failed the same test, so if Landis gets off and Gatlin loses titles, records, gets banned, etc., Scoop will have about two months' worth of column material.

 

A cyclist and a sprinter getting busted in the same week?

Who'da thunk it?

 

He shoulda used a scrotum patch

 

What are the odds

 

Statement from USATF CEO Craig Masback on Justin Gatlin announcement
USA Track & Field is gravely concerned that Justin Gatlin has tested positive for banned substances. Justin has been one of the most visible spokespersons for winning with integrity in the sport of track and field, and throughout his career he has made clear his willingness to take responsibility for his actions. Although difficult, his case demonstrates that in track and field and Olympic sports, it doesn't matter who you are. If you test positive for a banned substance, you will face substantial consequences. We hope Justin has not committed a doping offense, and we await the completion of the adjudication process.

USATF continues to work closely with the U.S. Olympic Committee, USADA, the IAAF and others to devise more effective ways of preventing intentional drug use and inadvertent doping positives. The future of our sport lies in the hands of our athletes, and we must do everything we can to enable our brightest young athletes to continue to win the right way, by training right, eating right, living with integrity and associating with the right people. We cannot control the decisions athletes make, or the people close to an athlete who might bring an athlete to harm with or without his or her knowledge. But we must make every effort to lay the groundwork for athletes at all levels to make the right decisions.

Those measures have to date included seminars with athletes of all ages and abilities, from youth to elite athletes; a quarterly anti-doping newsletter that reaches out to athletes, agents and coaches; our Be A Champion youth outreach program; and hiring full-time staff to work directly with USADA and USATF athletes to ensure that athletes are aware of and in compliance with all doping regulations. All of these measures fall under USATF's "Zero Tolerance" Anti-Doping Policy, but they alone will never be enough to eradicate performance-enhancing substances from sport.

We will continue to vigorously pursue new and more creative measures to improve the fight. We owe it to our athletes, our sport, and our sport's future.


Blah, blah, blah..I swear this is a stock press release that they keep on hand..just change the cheaters as warranted... anyone who has dealt with the dick wads at USATF know what I mean

 

And on a related note........http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-track29jul29,1,1452099.story?ctrack=1&cset=true

head in the sand, head in the sand

 

at what point does the story become the fact that WADA has gone too far in its efforts to curb doping?

Why would Justin Gatlin risk testing positive to run in a slapdick meet in Kansas City?

 

I was saying this to a friend tonight... Gatlin has tested positive, and at this point it doesn't really matter if he is truly innocent. There is no real defense to a positive test. It's over and done.

I truly believe that 99 out of 100 athletes that test positive for doping are guilty as charged. But I also believe in the fallibilty of testing -- whether it's through limitations in the testing, accidental mistakes by the athletes or even malicious tampering.

I like Gatlin, and I want to believe this is the one-in-a-hundred scenario. But, at the same time, I don't.

I did a story several years ago in which a USADA spokesperson gave me a great quote, saying that a player could be suspended for life because a banned substance was slipped in his breakfast cereal. It was extreme, but necessary.

As much as I've respected Gatlin, it's less upsetting to believe that he is guilty than believe that he could lose his career for something he didn't do.

 

The WADA is the world champion of summary judgment. Great Gawdawmighty, I look like Johnnie Cochran compared to the judge-jury-executioner routine of Quick Draw McGraw, the very aptly-named Dick Pound, who always rushes to the nearest microphone to foghorn the undeniable indisputable guilt of any athlete anywhere in the world accused of doping charges (although super extra especially if they happen to be American, or playing in a U.S.-based professional league).

I can't understand why legitimate news organizations go to Dick Pound for quotes on athletic doping. They might as well call ME and ask about the wisdom of letting emotionally troubled mass murderers loose for weekend trips to Disney World.

Why sure, let Charlie Manson out for a jaunt to Knott's Berry Farm. Why not? I'm sure Dick Pound would go along with him, because no matter what else you think of Charlie Manson, nobody ever accused him of roiding up. :

 

Asking Dick Pound about doping is like asking George Foreman to evaluate electric grills. The answer is predictable.

 

It's like going to Ann Coulter for a review of the Dixie Chicks' latest CD.