Ben Johnson makes emotional return to Seoul's Olympic Stadium
Former Sprinter rolls out anti-doping petition on 25th anniversary
Former Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson has marked the 25th anniversary of his Olympic disqualification, with an emotional return to the Jamsil Stadium in Seoul to roll out a petition in support of the ANTI-doping campaign, #ChooseTheRightTrack.
Johnson, who beat Carl Lewis and Linford Christie across the line at the 1988 Olympics before having his gold medal and new world record rescinded following a positive drugs test, read names from the 100 metre-long petition as it was rolled into lane 6 at exactly the moment when the final took place 25 years ago. Johnson, who is now 51 and a grandfather, showed he still possesses his natural talent by sprinting alongside part of the rolled out petition spanning the full length of the 100 metre course in the lane he was allocated for the final.
The petition reflects the names of sports fans that were collated during a month-long campaign which began in England on August 28th and also included visits to Canada, USA, Australia and Japan. The petition will now be taken to Switzerland where it will be presented to the International Olympic Committee’s offices in Lausanne and the campaign’s proposals commended for IOC consideration.
After beating the local rain showers and rekindling memories of 1988 by watching a re-run of the notorious race on the stadium’s big screen, Johnson said:
“This has been a significant day in my life and the memories have all come flooding back. 25 years ago, I was here as an athlete who cheated, but today I stand here as an anti-doping campaigner and I’m proud to be able to say that.
“For the last month, I’ve been talking to people in six different countries about the mistakes I made in using Performance Enhancing Drugs and after seeing the reaction of so many young people around the world who have listened to my story, the act of walking out onto this track, supported by thousands of names on an anti-doping petition is a very emotional experience.
“During our presentations and discussions across the world, I’ve seen and heard from people who genuinely want sport to be clean and fair. I was once a part of the other side of the story, so this visit is the perfect end to the tour because, now that I’m older and wiser, it brings everything full circle for me as an athlete and as a person.”
During the trip, which was promoted by the sportswear company, SKINS as part of its new platform PURE SPORT, Johnson presented three main changes to anti-doping practices which are aimed at eradicating doping and retaining credibility and integrity within world sport.
The campaign’s three main proposals are:
- WADA must have a transparent, unambiguous mandate that provides independence to its activities and adequate funding to effectively implement the code, free from political interference and with a mandated authority to act appropriately when required.
- An Athlete’s Support Council (ASC) reporting to WADA must be established to support, educate and offer whistle-blowing services to athletes and bridge the cultural gap and mistrust that exists between the administrators and the athletes.
- A Truth & Reconciliation type process must be initiated to allow certain sports (immediately starting with Cycling) to break the doping culture chain and give access to a level of intelligence that can only be enjoyed through maximum cooperation from current and ex dopers.
Jaimie Fuller said: “At SKINS, we have always spoken out when we believe it’s right and we’ve done it again through this campaign. Our brand is based around the core value of the true spirit of competition and the last month has highlighted the public’s demand for integrity across all sports. It’s been clear that people want a return to the days when athletes were hailed as champions without there being doubt that they may have used drugs to get there.
“Ben was initially seen by many as a brave choice to lead the campaign because he personified the modern era of doping, but we were convinced he was actually in the best position to speak out because he’s experienced what doping can do to your career and your life. There was a twisted perception that he was a lone doper and we now know, that wasn’t the case. But 25 years on, the wider problem remains and until those in charge of world sport acknowledge that, we won’t overcome it. There’s a 1% hit rate in terms of positive tests but the problem goes far deeper than that. “
#ChooseTheRightTrack has highlighted the current anti-doping system’s failure to address the public’s growing lack of confidence in the principle that sporting outcomes are based on fair and clean competition. As a result, ‘clean’ sport is being increasingly tainted with ‘guilt by association’.
In the last month, the campaign has collected together the thoughts of people from across the world to reflect the need for change to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).
Full details of the campaign and it’s proposals can be found at: www.puresport.skins.net
About Skins - A Brand Born Out Of Ambition
In 1996 a keen Aussie skier had a bold ambition – to develop a garment that would improve sports performance and aid recovery. Consulting with NASA scientists and other experts, it took five years of design, testing and finessing before the first pair of SKINS tights were launched in Australia in 2002.
Word spread fast that SKINS help you perform better and recover faster. Pro athletes were the first to get into them and before long amateur athletes joined the party.
The company has grown rapidly over the last decade, and continues to lead the innovation of the sports performance category it created, but our attitude has not changed a bit.
SKINS’ mission is simple: to radically improve the world of sport. At SKINS, we produce a product that’s scientifically proven by numerous independent studies and we say it how it is. No hype required.
Nowadays, SKINS’ global headquarters sit in Switzerland but our Aussie roots remain with a regional office in Sydney. Global growth has also seen regional offices open in the UK, USA, France and Germany and we have a distributor network that spans every major region around the globe.
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