Athletics: British athlete fails dope test

BRITISH ATHLETICS is due to announce its first major doping case since 1994 today, just 24 hours before the official launch of the reconstituted UK Athletics body.

A spokesperson for UK Athletics, Jayne Pearce, confirmed yesterday that an athlete had tested positive, but said no further details would be released until the competitor involved had received written notice of the full test result.

It is believed that the athlete in question had a urine sample tested earlier this month, and now faces the maximum punishment of a two-year ban, assuming it is a first offence. It is international policy to back up the results of a first test with a second analysis of each sample, although no cases have been recorded where the B test contradicts the A test.

Chafford Hundred, which looks after the interests of the majority of leading British performers - including Iwan Thomas, Jonathan Edwards, Steve Backley and Mick Hill - confirmed it was not one of its members.

Chafford's managing director, Fatima Whitbread, the former world javelin record holder, said: "If true it is terrible news for the sport. I can categorically state it is none of our athletes who won medals in Budapest last summer nor any other club member. If it was we would all be deeply disappointed."

The timing of this case could hardly have been worse for a sport that has pulled itself up by its bootstraps since the British Athletic Federation's lapse into bankruptcy in October 1997.

The image of British athletics has been substantially refurbished by last year's achievements, when the European Cup was retained and there were outstanding medal hauls from both the European Championships and the Commonwealth Games.

It was an indication of the sport's state of health that the BBC stepped in before Christmas to take over its television contract half-way through Channel 4's four-year deal, tripling the money on offer with a pledge of pounds 15m over the next five years.

But the sport's finances are still interlinked with one of the two athletes banned for doping abuse five years ago during the Commonwealth Games in Victoria.

Diane Modahl, whose ban was lifted on appeal, sought up to pounds 500,000 in damages from the British Athletic Federation, which is now in the hands of creditors, and until that claim is settled one way or another a large part of the new body's finances are frozen up.

Modahl was reinstated from the ban imposed in 1992 because the testing facilities in Lisbon were considered inadequate.

Pearce added: "We will only comment when all the relevant persons involved are informed, most importantly of all the athlete. As soon as we can we shall release further information."

Several current leading British athletes have indicated that they will be attending a celebrity launch in London tomorrow of the sport's new-style governing body.

David Moorcroft, chief executive of UK Athletics, said yesterday: "In any situation like this we have to be officially informed and as of now we haven't had any confirmation of a doping issue. We never comment on doping issues until there is confirmation."