SAN FRANCISCO — Olympic gold medalist Antonio Pettigrew admitted publicly for the first time Thursday that he used performance-enhancing substances during a long, successful sprinting career in which he passed all drug tests.
The admission came during the last day of testimony for the government in the trial of his former coach, Trevor Graham, who is accused of lying to federal authorities investigating doping in sports. Graham has pleaded not guilty.
Pettigrew testified that Graham encouraged him in 1997 to inject human growth hormone and the oxygen-boosting drug EPO, both banned in track. Once he began taking the banned substances, Pettigrew said he was able to run 400 meters in the 43-second range for the first time.
“I was running incredible times as I was preparing for track meets,” Pettigrew said. “I was able to recover faster.”
It also was revealed that Olympic sprint champion Justin Gatlin worked undercover for authorities investigating doping in sports, according to the testimony of IRS agent Erwin Rogers.
Footnotes.
Athletes at the Beijing Olympics will be subject to no-advance-notice doping controls at any time and any place. The drug-testing program, which will start with the opening of the athletes village July 27, will include about 700-800 urine tests for EPO and 900 blood tests.
• World-record holder Paula Radcliffe might not compete in the marathon at the Olympics because of a stress fracture in her left thigh bone.
“It’s going to go down to the wire, and I will need a bit of luck,” the Englishwoman said.
The Associated Press
