The entry list for next week's World Track & Field Championships have been released. On the entry list for the men's 100 meters is American Christian Coleman, the silver medalist (ahead of Usain Bolt) two years ago and one of the favorites to win the first post-Bolt world title. He'll also be running the 200 in Doha. A few weeks ago, however, that wasn't so certain.
That's because at the end of August, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency brought a "whereabouts violation" against Coleman, which carried an automatic one-year ban. However, two days before the scheduled hearing, USADA dropped the case. Their rationale? Pretty much because the World Anti-Doping Agency told them to. Basically, the USADA misinterpreted WADA's definition of a "whereabouts failure," and according to WADA, Coleman hadn't broken any rules.
Athletes are required to give anti-doping officials a one-hour window each day when they will be available for random drug testing. If they're not available during that hour, it counts as a missed test. While not the same as a missed test, athletes can also be held accountable for a "filing failure," which is essentially not providing accurate information about their location where they'll be available for testing. Three strikes, whether it's missed tests or filing failures or a combination of the two, within 12 months triggers a suspension.
Coleman's three whereabouts violations occurred on June 6, 2018 (filing failure), January 26, 2019 (missed test) and April 26, 2019 (filing failure). However, according to WADA's official code, "a filing failure will be deemed to have occurred on the first day of the quarter for which the Athlete fails to make a (sufficient) filing." Thus, the June 6, 2018 filing failure should've been backdated to April 1, the first day of the quarter. Which means that the June 6 filing failure expired on March 31, 2019. So, the April 26, 2019 filing failure was only his second in the 12-month period, not his third.
Does Coleman deserve some fault here? Absolutely. All three violations, while easily explained, were a result of either negligence or carelessness on his part. It's kinda crazy that WADA makes athletes declare their whereabouts three months in advance, but they also make it easy to update if their plans change. All they have to do is send an email or text message saying where and when they'll be available instead. Coleman didn't do that. That's on him.
It's important to note that Coleman has never failed a test. He was tested at least 18 times in 2018 and just as frequently this year, which means he's been tested nearly twice as frequently as the USADA requires. And he's passed every single one of them, including 20 days before and six days after June 6, 2018. It's also worth noting that on January 26, 2019, he missed a test. He didn't fail one.
Yes, I do understand that there are plenty of athletes who doped but never failed a test and vice-versa. But, by making this whole thing public, the USADA was painting Christian Coleman as a cheater when he's anything but. And now, regardless of the circumstances of the case, there are some people who are going to label him as a "cheater" from this day forward, even though he hasn't done anything wrong.
Which is why the USADA never should've made any of this public. They had no case and they knew it, yet they made their announcement anyway. They only backtracked after WADA told them to, and even then they were trying to pass the blame to anyone else. In his statement, USADA CEO Travis Tygart had the temerity to say: "Every athlete is entitled to a presumption of innocence until their case is concluded...this is certainly the case for Mr. Coleman."
I'm not even sure Tygart realizes how ridiculous that sounds! The USADA announced it was bringing chargers against Coleman when they shouldn't have, then said they gave him the "presumption of innocence?" Tygart, of course, was the main person responsible for Lance Armstrong's downfall, and Coleman accused him of simply trying to capture another big fish here. And frankly, that's sure what it looks like.
Meanwhile, Christian Coleman had to miss two Diamond League meets (and worry about his status for the World Championships) while the case was still in limbo. He now has the stigma of being considered a "cheater" simply because his name and "anti-doping violation" were mentioned in the same sentence.
Depending on who you ask, Coleman is either a victim or a villain. Where's the USADA's accountability, though? They make this big announcement where Christian Coleman is the bad guy, only to have to come back with their tails between their legs a few weeks later and say "Never mind. He's innocent of any wrongdoing." (That second announcement was made during the day on Labor Day, by the way.) By then, the damage had already been done.
At least this isn't an issue that's still hanging over Christian Coleman's head. He'll compete at the World Championships, where he has a very good chance of taking home three medals, and is still on track to be in Tokyo next summer. And if Travis Tygart is looking for him next week, he'll be in Doha. Where he should be.
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