Justin Gatlin Runs Faster Than Ever Eight Years After Being Caught Using Steroids

The most dominant sprinter in the world today isn't Usain Bolt. The “world's fastest man” in 2014 is Justin Gatlin. Gatlin's supremacy was highlighted by his performance at the IAAF Diamond League Bruxelles Memorial Van Damme track meet on September 5, 2014. Eight years following Gatlin's failed anti-doping test, he is running faster than ever (and presumably steroid-free).

The popular athletics websites LetsRun.com called Gatlin's performance the “greatest single-day sprint double in history”. Gatlin destroyed the field in Brussels when he won both the 100-meters (in 9.77 seconds) and the 200-meters (in 19.71) to earn the 2014 Diamond League title as the number-one ranked sprinter. The time of 9.77 was a personal record for Gatlin. (He had also set a new personal record in the 200-meter earlier this summer with a time of 19.68 in July 2014.)

What makes Gatlin's performances even more remarkable is the fact that he's accomplished them eight long years after he was busted using performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs). Gatlin tested positive for the use of the anabolic steroid testosterone after a track meet on May 12, 2006. He had just tied Astafa Powell's 100-meter world record of 9.77 to share the title of the world's fastest man.

The celebration was short-lived. Gatlin's 2006 world record time was annulled due to his positive steroid test; he was banned for eight years (which was subsequently reduced to four); and most people considered that to effectively be the end of Gatlin's career as an elite sprinter.

But Gatlin continued to train and decided to make a comeback in 2010. He posted respectable times but nowhere near his steroid-assisted times of 2006. He had a break out year in 2012 when he won the 100-meter bronze medal at the 2012 London Summer Olympics with a new personal record of 9.79. He placed behind Jamaica's Usain Bolt (1st) and Johan Blake (2nd).

At the age of 32, Gatlin's 2014 time of 9.77 matches his 2006 steroid-assisted performance. And he passed the steroid tests this time. However, it has not put an end to the general public's love-hate relationship with Justin Gatlin.

It raised numerous questions. How can a 32-year old sprinter run faster than he could at the age of 24? How can a presumably steroid-free sprinter run just as fast as he could when he was using steroids? How is it possible for any sprinter to make such a dramatic comeback? After all, it was eight years in the making and he was suspended from competition during four of those years.

Unfortunately, Gatlin has not been able to overcome the stigma of steroids. While many, if not most fans, are supportive and amazed at Gatlin's efforts, his detractors are unable to forget the fact that he has been suspended twice on doping violations.

His detractors recall that Gatlin never took responsibility for using anabolic steroids. He maintained his innocent and never admitted to knowingly using any type of anabolic steroid or PED. His former coach Trevor Graham suggested that massage therapist Christopher Whetstine sabotaged Gatlin; Whetstine was accused of massaging Gatlin with a transdermal testosterone cream without the sprinter's knowledge.

And it's not just the fan's who are unwilling to forgive and forget Gatlin's steroid past. Several track and field organizers don't want to have anything to do with Gatlin either. The promoters at three of this year's invitation-only IAAF Diamond League meets didn't even bother extending an invitatin to Gatlin.
Whether fans and promoters choose to entertain suspicions of steroid use or not, Gatlin's ongoing comeback and dominance in the sport is nothing short of amazing.

Source:

Letsrun.com. (September 5, 2014). Justin Gatlin Runs 9.77/19.71 to Pull Off Greatest Single-Day 100/200 Double in History. Retrieved from //www.letsrun.com/news/2014/09/justin-gatlin-runs-9-7719-71-pull-greatest-single-day-100200-double-history/