The Jamaica Star :: Sport :: Jamaicans needled by drug tests

Asafa Powell and head of the Jamaican delegation Chef de Mission Don Anderson as they arrived at the Olympic Village in Beijing. - Charles Pitt

BEIJING (AP)

A top Jamaican Olympic team official complained yesterday that unusually frequent anti-doping tests are upsetting preparations by his nation's sprinters ahead of Friday's (tonight Jamaica time) opening races.

"We have never seen this level of testing," Don Anderson, Jamaica's delegation head, said in a telephone interview one day after men's 100-metre gold medal contender Asafa Powell complained he has been excessively tested. "It could affect the performance of our athletes," Anderson said.

Over the past seven days, Anderson said, Jamaicans have been tested 32 times.

Repeated testing has distracted the runners and gotten on their nerves, he said - even if it probably presents no immediate medical issue.

"They get taken away during training or they are taken from the restaurant," he said.

Upsetting

Powell, who is part of a voluntary anti-doping programme, said Tuesday that the number of tests upset him.

"They took blood - a lot of blood," said Powell, adding he has been tested four times.

Jamaica's testing gripes come as its team focuses on its most important Olympic competitions.

Qualifying for the men's 100 begins Friday; the final is Saturday. With Powell and World Record-holder Usain Bolt, Jamaica has a shot at a one-two finish, though Tyson Gay of the United States is a strong contender.

Golden boy

Bolt alone could haul in more gold medals than the whole Jamaican team brought home four years ago, when it won two races and five overall. He's favoured to win the 200 and is in line for a golden triple if the strong sprint squad holds off the United States in the 4x100 relay.

The Jamaicans also have a strong women's sprint squad, raising hopes for more medals.

Their chief competition will be the Americans, who also are subject to strict testing but have not complained in Beijing.

Jeremy Wariner, defending gold medallist and two-time World Champion at 400 metres, said he had no issues with the number of tests he undergoes.

"Whatever we've got to do to get everybody the right way, then that's what we need to do," Wariner said.

A spokeswoman for USA Track & Field said she didn't immediately know how many times Americans have been tested in the Olympic context.

In a wide-ranging conversation with a small group of US reporters, IAAF president Lamine Diack praised the anti-drug work of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), including a voluntary testing programme that has attracted several top athletes.

"You see your boy Tyson Gay saying 'OK, I want to be a clean athlete. I'll give you blood. I'm ready to do that to prove that we are clean'," Diack said.