Reputation will not protect athletes from doping ban, says Sebastian Coe

Reputation will not protect athletes from doping ban, says Sebastian Coe
Sebastian Coe
Sebastian Coe

World Athletics president Sebastian Coe has stated that reputation will not protect sport’s high-profile athletes from doping ban. He has also warned it will be harder than ever to get away with taking banned substances at next year’s Tokyo Olympics.

A host of top athletes, including 100m champion Christian Coleman, have recently been sanctioned by the Athletics Integrity Unit as it looks to restore integrity in the sport plagued by doping scandals.

‘The AIU is not always going to be on everybody’s Christmas card list’

Sebastian Coe
Sebastian Coe

Sebastian Coe talked about the sanctions and ban put on high-profile athletes by Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) recently for doping.

FS Video

“I like to think that it has shown the athletes that we’re not fearful of reputation. Where there is an infraction we’re not fearful of going: ‘Oh well that’s quite a big name,” Coe told British media. “The AIU is not always going to be on everybody’s Christmas card list… but I do think that it has restored some confidence that we’ve got an organisation that will fearlessly and ruthlessly weed out the cheats,” the 1,500m double Olympic champion added.

Coe said improvements in testing would make it harder for athletes to get away with taking banned substances. “What I can say is if they do cheat, there is a greater chance of them being caught in Tokyo than probably any previous Games,” he said.

Also Read: World Athletics responds to Russia’s ban from sporting events for doping