The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
US sprinter missing three drugs tests inexcusable – Eve Muirhead
Iwould never dive straight in and accuse any athlete of having something to hide for missing one drugs test. That’s because (no names) but I know people who have done just that. And I can appreciate how it can happen.
I’m not part of the Anti-doping Administration & Management System (ADAMS) at the moment but I have been in the past.
I’ll give you an idea of how it works. Every day you need to put an hour slot into an app to say when you will be available if the authorities decide to come and test you.
If for example, I said 5pm to 6pm but, for whatever reason my plans had changed that day or I was stuck in traffic then that would go down as a missed test.
We’re all human and people do forget things.
For some, the more you do it, the more you get used to it being part of your life.
But for others, the more you do it, the less you think about it and the easier it is for you to slip up.
The best thing I found to keep me focused was making sure it was the app in the middle of my phone!
Like I said, I would never judge somebody for missing one but it takes three missed tests before you would get a ban. And that’s a benchmark that goes beyond being forgetful or unlucky.
In curling, there are only a few teams at any one time who are on the ADAMS programme but that doesn’t stop you getting tested randomly at home or at training.
All in all, it’s a pretty effective system. Tests are back in the news after the world 100 metre champion, Christian Coleman, was provisionally banned for missing his third.
You won’t find many people in sport who will have sympathy or believe his excuses.
And for track and field athletics it is just the latest in a long line of drugs stories. They don’t even come as a surprise anymore.
It probably says it all that I didn’t even know he was the fastest man in the world just now. The doping scandals have been too many and too frequent for me to look at the sport in the same way as I used to.
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You won’t find many people in sport who will have sympathy or believe his excuses
Great ambassadors
Not for the first time, Serena Williams and Andy Murray have shown what great ambassadors they are for their sport.
Tennis is lucky to have them.
Too many of the big players are missing the bigger picture with their reluctance to come out in support of a US Open with no fans.
Serena and Andy both get it though. There are players down the food chain who need big tournaments up and running again if it is a safe environment and the fact that it is far removed from what the top stars are used to is a secondary issue.
Particularly in Serena’s case for the women, you’ll find that where she leads, others will follow.
And I love the glass half-full mentality of Andy.
If there’s ever been an athlete who has grasped doing the right thing, then it’s him.