You Can Run But You Can't Hide Malmo - More And More People Know The Truth About You

I think this sort of thing is what rojo is referring to:

Carl Lewis has broken his silence on allegations that he was the beneficiary of a drugs cover-up, admitting he had tested positive for banned substances but claiming he was just one of "hundreds" of American athletes who were allowed to escape bans.

"There were hundreds of people getting off," he said. "Everyone was treated the same."

Lewis has now acknowledged that he failed three tests during the 1988 US Olympic trials, which under international rules at the time should have prevented him from competing in the Seoul games two months later.

The admission is a further embarrassment for the United States Olympic Committee, which had initially denied claims that 114 positive tests between 1988 and 2000 were covered up. It will add weight to calls by leading anti-doping officials and top athletes for an independent inquiry into the US's record on drug issues.

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2003/apr/24/athletics.duncanmackay

Malmo, what is the point of all this? This allegedly happened over 30 years ago. It seems like the only hard evidence is your personal confession that you cheated.

It was a different culture back then. The margins between what is white, gray, and black are ethically challenging now (caffeine, beetjuice, altitude tents ok, but cold medicines no?)and they were even more so back then when we had so little evidence on long term health affects or the actual benefit of any supplement.

Nevertheless, AW was a good program that did a lot for the development of American track and field at the time. Just about everyone I knew associated with team were good people that did things the right way - or at least believed they were doing things the right way. Perhaps a few, like you, cheated -- and maybe these same folks, like you, decided that after a month or two that it just wasn't worth it.

Just about all of the "stake holders" have moved on with their lives, raised families, and taken on other worthy professional careers. You are right, there were likely a few individuals in AW that didn't play by the perceived rules of the era, but your personal crackdown is only going to throw a blanket of suspicion on every person associated with AW.

Please let it go. It's time to move on and move forward.

And to A Duck and Letsrun admins, I ask of you the same. This hostile ongoing fued has done nothing but tear or sport down.

"The culture in the sport is much different than ti was 10 years ago let alone 30 in the 1980s. Up until recently, doping was often state sponsored and the authorities basically looked the other way. The incentive to dope was much different.

The culture of the sport is now clearly 100% against it. Back then it was almost for it. One of the things were are proudest of about letsrun is trying to change the culture and attitude about doping.

To further this change, I'd be willing to give immmunity to anyone and everyone who admitted to doping up until say about 2005. The people back then faced a much different choice than the ones now. Plus many of the people super high up in the sport right now or famous because of their participation in the sport were likely dopers."

"The [overall] culture in the sport" is exactly the same as it was 10 years ago, and 30 years ago.

Some doping is STILL state-sponsored and/or state-sanctioned.

"The authorities" continue to "look the other way" in many cases.

"The incentive to dope" is exactly the same as it ever was.

"The people prior to 2005" faced exactly the same choice as do people today.

If previous dopers are now high up in "the sport", THAT IS ALL THE MORE REASON TO OUT THEM AND DISQUALIFY THEM FROM CONTINUING TO PARTICIPATE IN ANY CAPACITY, BECAUSE THE RISK EXISTS OF THEM PROPAGATING THE ATTITUDES, VALUES, AND BELIEFS THAT CAUSED THEM TO DOPE IN THE FIRST PLACE.

Your assumptions are absolutely unwarranted, and your conclusions untenable. I have never read a more uninformed and inarticulate post on letsrun.

As far as people recommending what to do about doping, essentially none of you are qualified to comment on social policy in the way in which you do. There are well-established concepts relating to social policy, regulation, and law, of which you appear to be completely unaware, and without which you cannot even initiate a reasonable dialogue on the issue.

I won't even comment on specific legal and administrative requirements and terminology.

Again, I have never read a more uninformed and inarticulate post on letsrun.

Except perhaps when ventolin suggested that sprinters performed better in Rieti as a result of the nearby vegetation, and that's not the kind of company you want to keep.

Train town wrote:

translation: please make it go away.

You sound like someone with real skin in the game. Everyone associated with AW SHOULD have a blanket of suspicion thrown over them. Those who were not part of the biggest organized drug scandal in US track history can easily account for themselves, I know of many who I believe to be perfectly clean. I know of two I believed to be perfectly clean but weren't. I know of many who told me they were on drugs. You can email me any time....

Sorry, if I 'cheated' I did a very bad job at it. A real medical condition (anemia) treated by a board certified doctor (endocrinologist, who 'treated' just about every track athlete in Eugene) with a drug (Winstrol) which was developed for the treatment of anemia. What was gained athletically other than having a normal blood count.

Sorry, there is no 'personal' crackdown coming from me. I've told the Brojos over the years there were many people who for various reasons I didn't want to 'out'. There are a few whom I could care less about.

Maybe you shouldn't worry about me, but wonder why Dick Brown, Doug Brown, Dick Quax, Jeff Johnson, Jack Daniels, all served as admin/coaches at AW remain silent about what was going on there. Or those who worked in Nike promo with Geoff Hollister -- John Gregorio, Nelson Ferris, Ron Addison, all could corroberate/deny facts. You should wonder why all of the running vagabonds who passed through Eugene in the 70s-80s have kept their oath of omerta. Shouldn't they all be part of the solution? One of them did speak up, got caught in the big lie, then disappeared.

Please thank A Duck for waking me up out of my slumber.

To suggest that the "culture of the sport" previously supported drug use is false and a cop-out. The use of banned substances has always cheating. Everyone, even the cheaters, understand that. The fact that some people cheated does not mean that the majority of athletes and coaches supported drug use.

malmo wrote: but wonder why HARRY JOHNSON, Dick Brown, Doug Brown, Dick Quax, Jeff Johnson, Jack Daniels, all served as admin/coaches at AW remain silent about what was going on there.

An obvious omission, corrected.

Malmo - put up or shut up.

Canada1978 wrote:

Malmo - put up or shut up.

Grow up. Quit playing your childish games.

malmo, I think it's great that you, with your background at the elite level in the sport, are willing to discuss the shady undercurrent of the sport. I like that you are passionate about it and that you are fairly transparent. But surely you understand why many of us are underwhelmed by your "I know but I won't tell you" approach. You're a logical guy who seems to like through the BS, and I imagine that if you were in our shoes, you, too, would be playing "childish games" - if that's to what asking for concrete information as opposed to vague allusions amounts. Are you obligated to share details and name names? No. But what is the point of this conversation otherwise?

At least this thread is turning towards more of a discussion, moving towards some answers to questions that have been lurking in the background for decades. However, as "Commoner" aludes there is still are still elements of cloak and dagger, hearsay, and innuendo. Facts and evidence are better.

Anyway, thanks for turning this around.

Then you would understand that I'd like to take a deliberate, logical and thoughtful path and organize everything into one cogent document first, a complete inventory of athletes/coaches/administrators and a accurate timeline of how each fits into the story. That doesn't mean responding to every bit of noise created by anonymous people on a message board who won't understand the names and timelines or what's going on anyway. All that would do would be to create MORE noise. Then there are the trolls like A Duck who simply do not want the truth to eventually come out. The Brojos and at least 12 others have everything I have.

Over the last 10 years I'd had to resend the info to Wejo because he's always getting the facts mixed up and never seems to save what I send him. I've even given Alberto the information. With a snap of the fingers he could get Jeff Johnson (or others) to cough up everything he found out when he was send to Eugene to vacuum the place after Sev intercepted a billing in the mail. It's easy to understand why he wouldn't want to know.

There are a lot of loose ends to tie up and none of them involve you ... unless that is, you're one of the black hats in the story .. then it involves you..

Why are you so living in the past when NCAA steroid use is tolerated now? I wasn't AW material but had easy access to steroids in the 1980s (didn't do them, never smoked anything either). It sickens me to know that today in the NCAA there is no testing in most cases and frequently no punishment if caught.

http://www.letsrun.com/forum/flat_read.php?thread=5196343

Malmo,

You have translated my post correctly. I do want you to make this go away.

I don't care why you cheated 30 years ago. You had your reasons, seemed to have learned from it, and what's done is done. Now, however, you are just throwing stones...

Why should anyone clean have to vindicate themselves (and to whom?) for being a part of AW?

Why would you go on to list the names of the admins and promo guys with Nike and AW? You are only slandering there good reputations, and for what? Just about everyone of those guys have done decades of positive work for running in America. I'm mostly saddened that you slander the late Geoff Hollister. Geoff gave his heart and soul to the running movement as he knew the positive influence it has on human kind.

Malmo, I am asking you to make this stop. Your reputation is still intact and your opinions and advice are welcome here. However, you have let A Duck get the better part of you. Be better.

translation: please make it go away.[/quote]

Maybe you shouldn't worry about me, but wonder why Dick Brown, Doug Brown, Dick Quax, Jeff Johnson, Jack Daniels, all served as admin/coaches at AW remain silent about what was going on there. Or those who worked in Nike promo with Geoff Hollister -- John Gregorio, Nelson Ferris, Ron Addison, all could corroberate/deny facts. You should wonder why all of the running vagabonds who passed through Eugene in the 70s-80s have kept their oath of omerta. Shouldn't they all be part of the solution? One of them did speak up, got caught in the big lie, then disappeared.

[quote]malmo wrote:

Those who were not part of the biggest organized drug scandal in US track history can easily account for themselves... [quote]

Just to clarify (it's what I do): Are you saying that the AW period in question is the "biggest organized drug scandal?"

Admittedly not a drug-scandal junkie, I was under the impression (please feel free to correct me on this) that allegations that the national organization covered/covers up positive tests of big names was a bigger scandal.

I don't know why people are upset here. Let malmo take his time to gather his own information and that of others and see what he comes up with.

To those trying to prevent him from talking about it - shame on you. I don't care if it was 100 years ago. People have no need to worry about being slandered if they weren't doing anything wrong.

No one's being slandered...unless you know something I don't know. I listed the names of people who worked close enough to this who would be able to corroborate/deny certain details gleaned from other sources.

I didn't cheat. I had a perfectly legal prescription for a valid reason that allowed my blood count to return to normal. I went from a 23:30 8k all the way down to 23:28 during this period, 30s slower than my PR. If that's cheating then I'm pretty damn bad at it aren't I? Continuing to use would have been cheating. The point is, I was able to infiltrate THEIR back yard. Had I not spoken up no one would have known much about it. Maybe Sevene nor Brown would have spoken about it in the Ben Johnson documentary.

You're always welcome to email me.

the clarifier wrote:

Admittedly not a drug-scandal junkie, I was under the impression (please feel free to correct me on this) that allegations that the national organization covered/covers up positive tests of big names was a bigger scandal.

I'll concede that fact. The USOC/TAC coverup was bigger. But i don't know that the coverup was a premeditated coverup as much as a KYA reaction to all of the failed drug tests that would have changed history - the results of those olympics wouldn't even look the same if all of those busted were banned from competing.

george oscar bluth wrote:

To those trying to prevent him from talking about it - shame on you. I don't care if it was 100 years ago. People have no need to worry about being slandered if they weren't doing anything wrong.

The trolls are trying to prevent me from NOT talking about it and going about the business of gathering up the full picture. Noise and distraction is EXACTLY what they want.

Look, I've had reporters from SI, BBC and WSJ contact me within the last year. It seems that after they finally got Lance Armstrong they all think that they can get others. They're doing a pretty good job at baseball, after ignoring it for all of these years.

I dragged my feet with these reporters, not because I wanted to kill the story, but because I knew that they weren't going to be able to sort everything out on their own. They would need a lot of hand-holding on my part, and a lot of digging and heavy lifting from me too. I also knew that Jim Ferstyle ran into the wall of omerta 23 years ago when he pursued the story.

Anyone involved at AW at any time can email me any time. It's not a witch hunt.

Thanks for the clarification...

Seems as if there are parallel interests in this discussion: accurately documenting a period of US running history and the "witch hunt" side of things.

Nice to see that there are some efforts to make this something other than a muckfest.