An Olympic sprinter’s positive doping test left one of his top competitors smiling.
On Thursday, Britain’s Chijindu Ujah was provisionally suspended for allegedly breaching anti-doping rules at the Olympics, where he captured a silver medal in the 4x100m relay. The news proved satisfying for Italy’s Lamont Jacobs, who was the subject of doping speculation after winning a pair of gold medals in Tokyo.
“Accusations of doping? The situation hasn’t really affected me that much,” Jacobs told the Italian TV show, Unomattina. “I know the sacrifices and the hardships I’ve gone through to get here and instead I want to enjoy it 100%.
“After seeing the investigation into Ujah, I’d say that maybe it’s better to look at your own situation first before attacking others. The whole thing makes me smile.”
Though Jacobs entered the Olympics as an underdog, he excelled. He set a new European record in the men’s 100m with a winning time of 9.80 seconds, becoming the first Italian man to ever win the event. Then, in the 4x100m relay, Jacobs helped lead his country to a gold medal, with Italy edging Britain by 0.01 seconds.
Yet controversy in part clouded Jacobs’ success. His former sports nutritionist, Giacomo Spazzini, was under police investigation for alleged use of anabolic steroids to alter athletic performance.
Now, Ujah, not Jacobs, has put his relay team in a precarious spot. Should Ujah be found guilty, Britain’s 4x100m relay team will be stripped of their silver medals.
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