Saturday 27 / July / 2024
Kingston: Usain Bolt has told Reuters he would have no problem giving back one of his six Olympic gold medals if a Jamaican relay team mate is confirmed to have failed a drugs test.
Nesta Carter, who helped the 4x100 team to Olympic and world championship titles, returned a doping violation for the banned stimulant methylhexanamine in a re-test of 454 samples from the Beijing Games, sources familiar with the case have told Reuters.
Carter's "B" sample also came back positive, they said.
Jamaica's Olympic association has confirmed it received notification from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) that one of its competitors had returned an adverse analytical result, but it has not named the athlete.
Neither Carter nor his agent have responded to repeated requests for comment on the positive test.
"It's heartbreaking (the positive test) because over the years you've worked hard to accumulate gold medals and work hard to be a champion ... but it's just one of those things," Bolt told Reuters late on Saturday.
"Things happen in life, so when it's confirmed or whatever, if I need to give back my gold medal I'd have to give it back, it's not a problem for me."
First-leg specialist Carter has been a vital member of Jamaica's dominant squad, helping the Caribbean island win gold medals at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics and the 2011, 2013 and 2015 world championships.
Methylhexanamine has been on the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Code prohibited list since 2004 although it was reclassified on the 2011 list as a "specified substance".
Historically, the sanction for the use of Methylhexanamine has been a suspension of six months to a year and the loss of results from the period concerned.
The IOC's programme of revisiting samples is aimed at using developments in testing techniques to expose traces of drugs that were undetectable in 2008 or 2012.
Although Carter's relay team mates are not accused of doping, it is possible that the IOC could strip them of their gold medals because of the positive test.
Bolt, speaking after completing his own doping control on Saturday after clocking a season-best 9.88 seconds in the 100 at the Racers Grand Prix in Kingston, said they would just have to deal with the situation.
"I can't tell what he's going through, but it must be hard and frustrating because as I said I'm not too pleased about the situation," said the 100m and 200m world record holder.
"I think it's rough for track and field, but it's just one of those things that happen and we just have to deal with it."
Asafa Powell, who anchored Jamaica's team to gold at the Beijing Olympics and has himself served a six-month doping ban, said: "I'm just more concerned about the athlete, you know hopefully he gets through it.
"I mean, it happens and there's nothing I can do, it's just for them (Carter and his team) to make the right moves," he told Reuters.
Clocks 9.88secs
Olympic sprint champion Usain Bolt sounded a strong warning to his rivals for the Rio Games by winning the 100 metres at the Racers Grand Prix in Kingston in 9.88 seconds on Saturday after recovering from a stumble.
Bolt clocked the second fastest time of the year behind Frenchman Jimmy Vicaut's 9.86 and despite the bad start the six-time Olympic champion caught up with the strong field, which included Yohan Blake and Asafa Powell, at 60 meters with time to ease up in the last five meters.
"I'm happy I got a season best. It was not a perfect race but I was able to win," Bolt said after the race.
Nickel Ashmeade and Blake were second and third respectively in 9.94, while Powell finished fourth in 9.98 seconds.
"I almost fall over... all I was trying to control it (start) but it's just one of those things it comes, it goes," Bolt said.
"I think I dragged my foot too hard so it kind of propelled me forward and then I just tried to correct myself, not try to panic and just make my way through."
Bolt said his time will put him in a good place ahead of Jamaica's trials, starting June 30.
"It means that I'm in very good nick. As I said the more I run the faster I'll get, the smoother my running will become and take it from there," he said.
Two-time defending Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce won the women's race in 11.09 ahead of world indoor champion Barbara Pierre of the United States who crossed in 11.11.
American Johnny Dutch won the men's 400m hurdles in a new world leading time of 48.10 seconds bettering his own 48.36.
Another American, David Oliver, clocked 13.09 to win the 110m hurdles ahead of Jamaican Deuce Carter.
Miguel Francis of Antigua won the 200m in 19.88 beating Julian Forte who clocked 20.18. - Reuters
