June 7 update: On Sunday morning, Farah withdrew from the day's meet in Birmingham, saying he was "emotionally and physically drained" June 7 update: On Sunday morning, Farah withdrew from the days meet in Birmingham.
In the eye of a doping storm, the world’s best distance runner remained calm.
Speaking to the media on Saturday ahead of the weekend’s Diamond League meet in Birmingham, England, where he will race 1500 meters, Britain’s Mo Farah outlined how he intends to stick by his embattled coach, Alberto Salazar. This week a joint report by the BBC and ProPublica alleged Salazar, the coach of the Nike Oregon Project, encouraged team members to take prescription medications in the hope of gaining a competitive advantage.
Among the allegations made in the reports by former athletes and a former assistant coach: that 2012 Olympic silver medalist Galen Rupp was on testosterone medication as far back as 2002, when he was a high school runner coached by Salazar; that Salazar sometimes dispensed prescription medications when a physician indicated otherwise; and that physicians were enlisted to help athletes take prescription medications they didn't have a medical need for.
June 7 update: On Sunday morning, Farah withdrew from the days meet in Birmingham.
“I’m not leaving Alberto,” said Farah, who won gold medals in the 10,000 and 5000 meters at the 2012 Olympics, adding that he has “not seen any clear evidence” that his coach has been involved in doping.
“I’m really angry at this situation. It’s not fair. I haven’t done anything and yet my name is getting dragged through the mud,” he said. “If they turn out to be true and Alberto has crossed the line, then I’m the first person to leave him. The easiest thing for me to do is to jump, but I have to find the truth.”
Farah says he spoke briefly to Salazar on Friday over the phone, but has yet to ask for a full explanation concerning the reports. “I want him to prove to me these are just allegations,” Farah said. “If he can’t prove that to me, then I’m out.”
The British 32-year-old has been a member of the Oregon Project since the beginning of 2011, and since moving to Portland to work under Salazar and train alongside Rupp, Farah has developed into the best distance runner in the world. He is also world champion at 10,000 meters and 5000 meters.
Farah said he wants to discuss the revelations with his coach. “I’ve not spoken to Galen Rupp; he needs to answer questions,” Farah said. “If these allegations are true, well I still have to line up on the track and beat him.”
Farah was also quizzed about therapeutic use exemptions (TUEs), which are granted to athletes who have an illness or condition that requires taking medications that are prohibited by the World Anti-Doping Agency. Some experts and observers speculate that a few athletes, coaches, and physicians abuse these exemptions by lying about medical conditions in order to legally use medications that may enhance their performance.
“I had one TUE when I was in Park City, Utah, and collapsed and was taken away in an ambulance and given a drip,” Farah said, referring to an event which happened in July last year. “I have never been on thyroid medication, not at all.”
Farah was adamant that he has never taken banned substances and would take whatever steps necessary to prove his innocence, including releasing his blood values to relevant experts for examination. “For sure, I would publish it to the right people,” he said. “I want to be able to prove that I’ve got nothing to hide.
“I’m a clean athlete. I’m against drugs. Anyone that uses them should be banned for life.”
Farah went on to say that he is angered by the treatment he’s received in media reports over the past week.
“My reputation has been ruined,” he said. “You guys [the media] are killing me. I haven’t done anything; it is about Alberto.”
U.K. Athletics, the governing body of track and field in the U.K., also issued a statement on Saturday in support of Farah, while also acknowleding the “gravity of the allegations.”
The statement said, in part, that U.K. Athletics “can confirm it has had absolutely no concerns over the conduct and coaching methods of Alberto Salazar in relation to Mo Farah or in his role as an endurance consultant.”
The statement went on to say that the organzation views “the allegations made in regard of non-British athletes who have been coached by Alberto Salazar with utmost seriousness.”
Cathal Dennehy is a freelance writer based in Dublin, Ireland, who covers the sport for multiple outlets from Irish newspapers to international track websites. As an athlete, he was Irish junior cross-country champion and twice raced the European Cross Country, but since injury forced his retirement his best athletic feat has been the Irish beer mile record. He’s happiest when he’s running or writing stories about world-class athletes.
