Things are not looking so good for Justin Gatlin. His appeal to reduce his ban from 4 years to 2 years was rejected by CAS. USATF President Bill Roe had this to say:
“USA Track & Field respects the decision of the Court of Arbitration for Sport regarding Justin Gatlin’s eligibility. This case has been complex and nuanced, and we are glad that it has come to a final resolution. Throughout the entire BALCO saga, the critical lessons have been clear: athletes must take responsibility for the substances they put into their bodies, and must choose wisely the individuals with whom they associate. We are now looking ahead, focusing on the Team USA squad for the Olympic Games that will be chosen at the Olympic Trials. These are the athletes who will take track and field into a brighter present and future.”
I am not surprised by this decision, but I do think that he got the short end of the stick. Gatlin’s first offense was because of medication he had been prescribed as a kid for ADHD, and I don’t think that the punishment that he received in college should necessarily have had any bearing on his professional career.
The matter is settled now, though, so in 2010 he can decide whether he wants to compete again or not.
(More Information: CAS – USATF)
The question now is: does he train for the next 4 years, and if so how hard? It must be hard without any goals/events in the near term.
I think that he’ll keep training. He only has 2 years left on his ban (it was effective as of 2006) and when he appealed in January he was hoping to get it reduced to 2 years so that he could try to compete in Beijing.