Positive 'B' sample test confirms US star used banned substance

Former world sprint champion Tyson Gay's 'B' sample from an out-of-competition test in May has been confirmed positive for a banned substance, the US Anti-Doping Agency said on Friday, while adding he had returned another positive test.

"We can confirm that the B sample analysis of a sample collected from Mr Gay has been completed and that the B sample analysis has confirmed the A sample findings," USADA chief executive Travis Tygart said in a statement to Reuters.

Tygart added an additional sample collected from the American sprinter had also returned "an adverse A sample finding," though he did not identify the location of where the second test was taken.

"The results of these tests were expected given Mr Gay's acceptance of responsibility for the substances found in his body as soon as he was notified of the 'A' sample results," Tygart added.

A tearful Gay said in an interview on July 14 that his 'A' sample from the out-of-competition test in May had returned a positive result for a substance he would not disclose.

"I don't have a sabotage story. I don't have lies," he said. "I basically put my trust in someone and I was let down,."

Gay added he had never knowingly taken a performance-enhancing drug.

"I made a mistake," added the 30-year-old, who is jointly the second fastest 100m runner of all-time at 9.69 sec.

Gay's confirmation of the first positive test occurred on the same day Jamaican athletics was plunged into crisis.

Former world 100m record holder Asafa Powell and Olympic 4x100m relay silver medalist Sherone Simpson said they had both tested positive for the stimulant oxilophrine at last month's Jamaican championships.

Three other athletes failed tests at those championships.

Two-time Olympic 200m champion Veronica Campbell-Brown had earlier tested positive for a banned diuretic at a May meet in Kingston.

Gay, the 2007 world double sprint champion, withdrew from the US team for next month's world championships in Moscow after notification of May's positive 'A' test.

"We appreciate Mr Gay voluntarily removing himself from competition prior to the world championships while we evaluate the circumstances surrounding his adverse analytical findings," Tygart said.

"We will work towards achieving a fair resolution of his case in accordance with the rules," he added.

Gay, the US record holder at 100m, sped to what were then the year's fastest times in winning the 100m and 200m at the US championships in late June.

He was considered a strong challenger for Jamaican world record holder Usain Bolt at the upcoming world championships.

Gay had recorded the year's three fastest 100 times, topped by his 9.75 at the US meet. Only Bolt has run faster than Gay's 19.74 sec in the 200 this year.

"It has been very tough for me," said the soft-spoken Gay, sobbing throughout the July interview. "I have always been a drug-free athlete."

He had never previously failed a doping test and had participated in a USADA program in which athletes undergo additional testing to prove they are drug-free.

Neither Gay nor his management team could be reached on Friday.

The world championships run Aug 10-18.

(China Daily 07/28/2013 page7)