Gatlin stays focused amid Beijing distraction
LAWRENCEVILLE, Georgia (Reuters) - While the world's top sprinters are preparing for the biggest race of the Beijing Olympics -- the men's 100 meters final -- the reigning champion is refocusing his life at a gym on the outskirts of Atlanta.
Four years ago, Justin Gatlin raised his arms in triumph as he defied the odds and beat defending champion Maurice Greene to take the title in Athens. He also won bronze in the 200 meters and silver in the 4x100 at the Games.
Two years later, he tested positive for testosterone and received a four-year ban.
"It's frustrating. I would not say that it hurts but you can think that knowing I am missing out," Gatlin said in an interview.
"I didn't face that much pain (at not being able to compete) because I have my medals and these are the cards that have been dealt to me and I have to deal with it," he said.
It was a second doping offence. In 2001 he tested positive for an amphetamine contained in a medication he had taken since childhood for Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD).
He lost a legal battle in June to have the ban rescinded in a bid to defend his crown and now he must wait for a second chance to compete.
On the surface 26-year-old Gatlin is using the enforced ban to start a new career as a trainer of elite athletes -- a career that could prove very lucrative.
But Gatlin, who continues to declare his innocence, faces an inner battle to avoid the despair that could bring him down during his enforced absence from the sport.
That challenge is made harder because he remains in peak condition yet watches the sprint world move inexorably towards its ultimate race and create new stars in the process.
ON YOUR TOES
Gatlin works out at The Factory, a windowless super-gym in a warehouse park northeast of Atlanta for professional athletes, mainly football players, and elite students.
At first glance, The Factory resembles an ordinary gym with its free weights and pumping rock music. But there are clues to its more serious purpose.
A 40-yard strip of synthetic green surface is marked out for sprint training.
Look closer and it is clear none of the clients need to lose weight or keep ageing bodies in trim. Everyone works with a focused intensity and there is not an ounce of fat in sight.
On Tuesday, Gatlin's students included Don Moon, 17, a high school football player who strapped a harness around his chest and pulled a 35-pound weight the length of the football pitch while Gatlin gave instructions on sprinting technique.
"Powerful arm swing when you come out (of each stride), OK?," he shouted. "Stay on your toes."
But Gatlin said he wanted to focus on athletes with ADD. To that end he trained Robert Benson, an 11-year-old baseball player.
Both Gatlin and Benson suffer from ADD, a condition that proved central to the court case. When Gatlin was convicted in 2001, authorities agreed the drug he took was a component of his ADD medication and did not enhance performance.
Gatlin's lawyers told a federal court in June this factor should mitigate the four-year ban and a judge said he sympathized with the point though he rejected Gatlin's case.
As to the 2006 offence, Gatlin said he "felt strongly" the drug was administered to him without his knowledge.
"What keeps me going is that I know my capabilities. I know my God-given talent. I should be out there breaking the world record and winning medals," said Gatlin.
Gatlin said he can replay the 100m triumph over in his mind in intense detail, right down to the instant when, realizing he was ahead partway through the race, he clenched his fists slightly in premature triumph and almost lost out.
In his spare time at the Factory he works out, looking forward to the day when he can compete again with an eye on the 2012 Olympics in London. By then he'll be 30, an advanced age for a sprinter, but Gatlin sees the upside.
"I'll be well rested," he said.
(Editing by Miles Evans in Beijing)
