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'Leper' Chambers can fight his Olympic ban
Matthew Beard, Evening Standard13 Feb 2008
The man who helped to ban Dwain Chambers from athletics admitted today that the Briton now has the right to run in the Olympics.
Dick Pound was the head of the World Anti-Doping Agency in 2004 when the 29-year-old was found guilty of taking the anabolic steroid THG and handed a two-year suspension by the IAAF.
At the time, Pound said he was satisfied with the decision and hoped that the ban would send a message that "those who cheat will be caught and will face the consequences".
Chambers has now served his time and was selected for the British World Indoor team yesterday after winning the 60m trial at the weekend.
UK Athletics said they did not want the sprinter - who today insisted he was being made to feel like a "leper" - representing their country.
From a legal standpoint, UKA had no choice, and Pound believes that Chambers can now successfully challenge the automatic life ban any athlete caught taking drugs is handed by the British Olympic Association and compete in Beijing this year.
Pound said: "The basic provision is that the normal suspension period is two years and you are entitled to come back in the same way as a convict would from prison.
"The argument to be made is that this is an additional penalty by the BOA which is not in conformity with the (WADA) code. It's important for the BOA whether the lifetime ban is enforceable."
Pound, a member of the International Olympic Committee, added: "I have personal, visceral issues with this person taking part in the Olympics but doping is governed by rules." Prominent sports lawyer Nick Bitel agreed with Pound and believed the athlete's best chance would be in challenging the ban on the ground that it hinders him in making a living.
He said: "The BOA has always argued that running in the Olympics is not a trade, it is a privilege. I fear that is a difficult position for them because it does add to an athlete's value - most of them have a clause in their shoe contract which says they earn money if they make the Olympics.
Chambers said that he now just wanted to get on with his life and finish a career he felt was unfulfilled. "I'm being made to feel like a leper," he moaned. "A stigma has been attached to me but people need to know I am clean.
"Yes, I did something wrong. I did the crime - but I've done my time and now I've moved on.
"Other people are allowed to get on with their lives once they have served a punishment - so why can't I get on with mine?"
Meanwhile former double Olympic champion Sebastian Coe said he would continue his campaign for the minimum two-year ban for athletes testing positive for steroids to be extended to four. The IAAF reduced the penalty in 1997 after courts in several countries refused to uphold the longer ban.
Lord Coe said: "I still think that eventually we'll get to four years and that's really important. Reducing it to two years was a huge error of judgement and most of us knew where that was going to go."
