‘It made me smile’: 100m champ Lamont Jacobs relishes GB’s doping woes after media speculation
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Italy’s double Olympic champion Lamont Marcell Jacobs says it made him smile to see the British media switch focus to a doping case in their own country, after previously raising suspicions that he could be a drug cheat.
Key points:
- The Times of London reported that a nutritionist linked with Jacobs was the subject of an Italian doping probe
- Jacobs led Italy to 4x100m relay gold ahead of Great Britain, whose silver medal may be stripped from them
- The Italian sprint star announced he would not run again in competition until 2022
Britain’s 4x100m relay silver medallist Chijindu “CJ” Ujah was provisionally suspended on Thursday for allegedly breaching anti-doping rules after he returned an adverse analytical finding (AAF) from a test carried out during Tokyo 2020.
It came after Jacobs’s shock gold medal and European record time of 9.80 seconds in the 100 metres final — followed by his starring role in pipping Britain to 4x100m gold — led to UK media reports highlighting doping cases involving breakout stars in athletics.
That included a Times of London report that a police steroid investigation in Milan was looking at Giacomo Spazzini, a nutritionist who had bragged about training Jacobs.
“It makes me smile, thinking of those people who spoke without thinking about what they were saying, who must now look to their own home instead,” Jacobs told Italy’s public broadcaster, Rai.
Getty Images: Cameron Spencer
)“I have worked so hard, I have made sacrifices and I did not want to lend weight to people who do not know what they are talking about.”
Jacobs was also quoted in the Italian newspaper Tuttosport, saying “the situation hasn’t touched me”.
“I know the sacrifices and blows I went through to get here. Instead, I want to enjoy it 100 per cent,” he said.
“Having seen the investigation into Ujah, I would say that perhaps it’s better [for the British media] to look closer to home before attacking others. It made me smile.”
Jacobs announced on Instagram on Thursday that he would not compete again until 2022, saying he wanted to peak in time for the world and European championships.
“The decision to not compete again until 2022 was not simple, also because I am a competitor and always want to race, but then you realise that Tokyo is a starting point,” Jacobs said.
“Next year there are important events like the World Championships and European Championships, and I want to arrive there in top form and prove myself.”
He also revealed plans to compete in the 200 metres next year.
Reuters
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