by Zach Bigalke

Created on: July 30, 2007   Last Updated: October 31, 2008

In other news from the fight against doping, Justin Gatlin is appealing his eight-year ban from the track after testing positive for synthetic testosterone last August. In a special agreement with the United States Anti-Doping Agency, Gatlin agreed to an eight-year ban and an admission of the positive result in exchange for the right to further appeal of the length of ban in lieu of the lifetime ban warranted by his second positive test result.

Doping in all instances is wrong. But Gatlin's first positive test was a result of a drug commonly prescribed to America's youth: the ADHD drug Adderol, which contains amphetamines banned under international sports code. What happened is that Gatlin would forgo his medication in the weeks before a track competition in order to let the flag-raising amphetamines clear his system. A budding athlete at the University of Tennessee at the time, Gatlin appealed the suspension and had his sentence reduced to twelve months. However, the blemish on his record remained.

I believe that Gatlin is not innocent. I believe that he knows more about where the testosterone which triggered this fiasco originated. But I also know that he was once a youth simply trying to do his honest best to become a success. He is currently being penalized for listening to his doctor all those years ago. The powers that be should recognize this testosterone for what it really is: the first offense by Gatlin to synthetically enhance his results. That Adderol in college was inconsequential. It was not a doping offense; it was an honest mistake and a misunderstanding of the rules by a youth not fully indoctrinated with Olympic rules.

Gatlin should not be given total leniency, yet he should not be effectively retired from the sport. If the appeal fails, Gatlin will not be eligible to return to competition until 2014. By that time, the then-32-year-old man will have a hard time reentering a sport and a discipline (sprinting) in which most athletes his age are long retired. A two-year ban, the standard suspension for a first-time offender of doping regulations, is what Gatlin deserves. Hopefully for him, and for the sport of sprinting, the appeals court in Atlanta will feel the same way...

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