Tyson Gay Gets 1 Year Doping Ban from USADA - 50% reduction for "fully and truthfully cooperating"

Jeff Wigand wrote:

Bad Wigins wrote:

CF is saying,

1) pretty much all top elites dope. True.

2) they always have. True

3) testers aren't interested in actually eradicating dope, because then they'd be out of a job. True.

4) A doping-free sport is impossible. FALSE.

None of his "that's the way it is" crap means a damn thing compared to how it should be. He doesn't seem to realize how offensive doping is to everyone who attained their PR's by natural means.

What was it like when you were competing as an elite athlete?

Your weak attempt to make me doubt myself has failed.

What does a 1-year ban mean if all of his results are annulled for almost 2 years?

Isn't it effectively a 23 month, 1 week ban?

Can any expert explain the distinction between being banned, and not being banned but having your results annulled?

Looks like the effective benefit for fully cooperating was about 3 weeks.

How did he not test positive sooner if he was juiced since July 2012? If he was innocently using this cream he should have been caught sooner, as he would have no reason to stop using it around races etc. Presumably he knew it was dodgy and avoided using it around competitions

'I do think the concept of allowing people to be honest and help take down the entire system is key. You have to encourage that. He'd be eligible for 2015 worlds regardless so is this really too light??? I don't know'

I dont know! For someone who has written about how disillusioned they are with the sport because of doping I am disappopinted with your luke warm response to this

Firstly on a technical note I thought the bans had been increased to 4 years. When does this come in to force

Then back to your response the ban at 2 years is too light to reduce that to 1 year for supposedly being truthful is ridiculous

The letsrun reporting of this case has shown obvious bias down to him being American and 'a nice guy' Don't come back with some BS response, I know and surely you also know deep down that if Gay was Russian your response to this would be completely different

How is blaming somebody else; 'someone let me down' being truthful.

"I don't have a sabotage story. I don't have lies," Gay, who had previously spoken out against doping, said in a 2013 interview, adding he had never knowingly taken a performance-enhancing drug. "I made a mistake' 'basically put my trust in someone and I was let down."

How can anyone not see how he is contracting himself

The sport is a farce I thought with the Jones case the sport had begun to take doping seriously. Now, well the dopers have won

Had Tyson Gay offered all his "full and truthful cooperation" before returning a positive test, a 1-year back dated ban might have seemed appropriate. The fact that he got caught by a drugs test should have meant that he receive a minimum of two years.

The extent of the full and truthfulness will also have to be judged by the wider ramifications: for example, if his coaches now also get sanctioned, based on Gay's testimony. So far, I haven't heard anything of the kind, but maybe USADA is just trying to be very meticulous in their approach.

The only bit of good news to emerge is the disqualification of the 2012 relay team - that is one way to put pressure on athletes not to dope. Sadly, most athletics events aren't relays.

rekrunner wrote:

What does a 1-year ban mean if all of his results are annulled for almost 2 years?

Isn't it effectively a 23 month, 1 week ban?

Can any expert explain the distinction between being banned, and not being banned but having your results annulled?

Looks like the effective benefit for fully cooperating was about 3 weeks.

I'm not an expect, but unless he has he paid back all prize money, appearance fees and money from sponsors and product endorsements, that would be one difference.

I am profoundly outraged by this. In Jamaica they handed down 18 month ban for stimulant use to Asafa Powell and Sherone Simpson for the use of a product that did not even have the stimulant listed on the label. Powell and Simpson purportedly used the product for a few weeks prior to competition.

I don't see then how steroid use of a product that was labelled as such over a 2 year period can result in a 1 year ban. The IAAF was going to give Campbell Brown 2 years for the presence of a diuretic 'til CAS stepped in and said the testing protocol was screwed up and threw the test result out as void.

Further I assume that Doc Patton and the others on London 2012 will have to return their medals, a medal they would likely have even if Tyson was not on the team. For denying one of my favorite sprinters an Olympic medal, for that alone, he should get 2 years. I don't care how much 'assistance' he provided.

The message here: Go ahead and cheat, if you get caught, cooperate with USADA and we will have you back in no time. This is utter nonsense. "I cheated at the games, but not at the trials". Right! How selfish is that dude. Cheating at the trials would have only affected him, yet he decided to take other down with him by cheating at the Games. This young man has been cheating all his life, from while he was at Barton; to getting to Arkansas, (we all no that story) and it continues.

If USADA and USATF cares about track and field, they should do more. USATF should adopt a clause in its constitution stating that "in order to be eligible for any national team selection, one must not have had a positive drug test within the last two years or in some case 4 years prior to selection".

I think it's simple. First doping offense should be four years...sufficient to remove them from contention in the next Olympics as well as several World Champs Second offense is a lifetime ban.

One year essentially reduced to "time served" is asinine.

NotaUSTFfan wrote:

If USADA and USATF cares about track and field, they should do more. USATF should adopt a clause in its constitution stating that "in order to be eligible for any national team selection, one must not have had a positive drug test within the last two years or in some case 4 years prior to selection".

+1

That's a great idea. This case is making a lot of people like hypocrites. Maybe whatever 'they' had planned is working if so many people are just buying in to Gay's upstanding character. As another poster pointed out, its too fishy that he had been unknowingly doping for so long without getting caught before he did.

I'm at the Tyson Gay invitational track meet in Lexington and they just honored him. How should I feel about this?

ddd1 wrote:

How did he not test positive sooner if he was juiced since July 2012? If he was innocently using this cream he should have been caught sooner, as he would have no reason to stop using it around races etc. Presumably he knew it was dodgy and avoided using it around competitions

he's been juiced for years

I would hazard a guess at 10yrs

Fully expect to see lawsuits against Tyson's supplying doctor Clayton Gibson and Jon Drummond by the 5 other athletes losing their medals. Do these athletes have to return their USOC bonus money for the relay? This will lead to more court time than track time for some US sprinters in next couple years.

The athletes new union TFAA needs to demand Drummond immediately resign his position with USATF and pressure USATF for a life ban on his activity with USATF. Same pressure should be applied in regards to Dennis Mitchell.

I assume then you have removed yourself from the sport given your statement of the sport being farce.

I wonder why the UK's management of its own internal athletics is a farce with ongoing turnover and now Cram to head the distance element without having ever coached in his life ?

I wonder as well why Max released a statement addressing Gay's ban when he has been unable to say anything about other issues i.e.: DQ at nationals.

The sport of track and field itself is amateurish in nature , it struggles with professional leadership and vision.

[quote]Still a Queen and Crown wrote:

I wonder why the UK's management of its own internal athletics is a farce with ongoing turnover and now Cram to head the distance element without having ever coached in his life ?'

Cram is an advisor he is not heading anthing. Cram has coached several international athletes. Perhaps talk about something you know more about.

It's interesting that more people are concerned about some DQ in a race than the real problem in the sport, doping

Any more news on the vague statement 'admits he cheated at 2012 Olympics'

Your disappointment seems to me unfounded, or at best, premature.I guess if the default ban is 4 years, maybe WADA or the IAAF, with the right of appeal, might have gotten the memo, and they might bring that up if they felt it noteworthy.When describing the "truthfulness" of Gay, you need to dig a little deeper than a brief press conference from 1 year ago. USADA rewarded Gay for the details that came later. From the USADA statement, there was physical evidence, and 3 detailed interviews.Don't give "the Jones case" too much credit, as that wasn't "the sport" taking doping seriously -- it was a federal investigation, involving fraud and money laundering, that happened to coincide with "the sport" and "doping".Yet, the validity of Gay's ban reduction is still something that remains to be seen -- there are rumors of an "anti-aging" doctor who treats athletes in many sports. A reduction can be argued only if there was substantial information that will (or would?) lead to further sanctions.

Letshavedoublestandards:

'She stole over $1.4 million but it seems unlikely meets will get it back because she is in Russia. No official word, but athletes she beat likely won't get their money either'

Why is Gay not getting the same treatment. We are used to hearing athletes referred to a 'cheat', 'doper' but not where Gay in concerned. 'Questions need to be asked' Lame

ukathleticscoach wrote:

Letshavedoublestandards:

'She stole over $1.4 million but it seems unlikely meets will get it back because she is in Russia. No official word, but athletes she beat likely won't get their money either'

Why is Gay not getting the same treatment. We are used to hearing athletes referred to a 'cheat', 'doper' but not where Gay in concerned. 'Questions need to be asked' Lame

I think you have a point. The Brojos are usually admirable in their anti-doping stance, but they seem to have this weird soft spot for Tyson Gay. Here is a quote from Wejo earlier:

"I don't think Shobukhova will give back any money, but if Tyson still want to compete, then the races that paid him appearance fees, etc can say "pay up" or you are not competing..."

Now, why is Liliana Shobukhova called "Shobukhova" but Tyson Gay is "Tyson"? Why not Liliana and Tyson? Maybe some would say I'm reading too much into a quick post, but to me, it reflects a weird affection they seem to feel towards Tyson Gay. Do they talk about how "Asafa" got busted, or how "Marion" got busted? If Walter Dix got busted, would they say "Walter should be rewarded for giving information about his dealers"? I don't think so. Everybody else goes by their last names, but not Ty-Dog. It's like they can't quite let go of the fact that they used to like him.

Tyson Gay seems to have been really effective at creating this image of himself as a "good guy". Sort of like Lance Armstrong, another guy who people still refer to by his first name. Even when people criticize him now, he's "Lance", not "Armstrong". "Lance only cares about what is good for Lance", etc. As far as I'm concerned, he's just another doper, as guilty as the rest. I believe his career was built on dope. You don't run 9.69 clean, and THEN switch to doping afterwards.

Do tests look at artificial testosterone or just the ratios?