As an athlete who has been involved in doping procedures for years – and who came close to missing tests – I feel compelled to defend cyclist Lizzie Armitstead
It might not be an ideal moment to speak up in support of an athlete who has been viewed suspiciously by her fellow Olympians but I’ve been spurred into action after reading so many people, many of whom love to sensationalise, offering their opinions on Lizzie Armitstead’s missed drugs tests. A depressingly dark cloud lingers over the sporting world at present – and many athletes and associations are cheating more than ever – but it’s worth considering another side of the story before reaching a suspicious conclusion. As a professional athlete who has been involved in doping procedures for many years and has been tested untold times, I have to say, without knowing Lizzie, I feel compelled to defend her. If nothing else, she deserves to have someone show another side to it all. My own hunch is that she is not a doping cheat and that she made a mistake. Something that has not often been noted in reflections of commentators over the past weeks, is that in 2016 alone Armitstead faced 16 tests and all of them were clean. [Read more]. |
- James Willstrop, People should understand how drug tests work before they condemn athletes, The Guardian, August 18, 2016
Lizzie Armitstead before the women’s Olympic road race. Photo: Tom Jenkins for The Guardian.
|
No comments:
Post a Comment