Drugs in Sport/The Justin Gatlin affair: When Justin Gatlin was a child he used to train by hurdling over fire hydrants in Brooklyn. These days his methods of preparation appear a little more sophisticated and possibly illegal; he faces a likely life ban from athletics after testing positive for too much testosterone. Once again the sport has been betrayed.
After winning the Olympic 100-metre title in Athens two years ago he was hailed as a force for good. ESPN magazine claimed he "might finally change track for the better".
He was charming and charismatic, diamond earring twinkling from his right ear, his smile and courtly manners adding weight to his claims.
He was the kid who had travelled from New York to attend the University of Tennessee as a 110m hurdler but had been converted into a sprinter.
His career suffered an early hiccup in 2001 when he tested positive for amphetamines, but the suspension was lifted early after he persuaded the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) it had been due to medication he had been taking.
Soon after he returned to action, Gatlin's potential was clear to see when he claimed 60m gold at the world indoor championships in Birmingham in 2003.
The victory in Athens was followed in 2005 by the world championships in Helsinki, when he became only the second man to claim the 100m-200m double.
Even Michael Johnson, a critic who does not lightly give out credit, acknowledged him as "the best sprinter in the world".
It appeared Gatlin had removed any doubts when he had raced to a world record of 9.76 in Doha, Qatar, in May.
The time was subsequently amended to 9.77, equalling Asafa Powell's mark. Still, at the age of 24, Gatlin seemed to have the world at his talented feet.
By then, however, the wheels that seem certain to bring about his downfall had already been set in motion. A regular test taken at the Kansas University relays, a low-key meeting on April 22nd, had shown signs of excessive testosterone, though it was not until June 12th that Gatlin was informed by the United States Anti-Doping Agency.
Even if he somehow survives this controversy, his reputation is so irreparably damaged that few European promoters will want to touch him.
Many people will blame the predicament in which Gatlin finds himself on Trevor Graham, his coach. To have one world-class athlete you coach banned for failing a drugs test is unlucky; to have two is a coincidence. But to have eight caught taking performance-enhancing drugs?
Graham's athletes collect plenty of gold medals but appear to receive just as many drugs suspensions, and Gatlin is just the latest in a long line of big names the Jamaican has worked with implicated in scandal.
