Another twist on the road to redemption for Dwain Chambers is on the cards after a leading European promoter branded some of his peers “hypocrites”. After years of burnt bridges and blown whistles, moves are under way to erase his blanket ban and allow him to run in the Diamond League.
Laurent Boquillet, the promoter of the Paris leg of the new series, said that he was uncomfortable with the stance taken by Euro Meetings, an umbrella group of Europe’s top promoters. It has an agreement not to invite those with two-year drug bans behind them to meetings, thus condemning Chambers to a half-life in which he can run for Team GB but not for himself on big international nights.
Boquillet said: “This is making fools of us all. We are hypocrites because people will invite other athletes who have cheated. There are athletes who are on drugs or have been. With Chambers I think it is personal, but I have not been hurt by him more than by anyone else who has taken drugs.”
The Euro Meetings stance has many backers. However, others say that there is something ridiculous about Chambers being able to run for Britain at the World Championships and next month’s European Championships, while being excluded from the A-list meetings on the rest of the calendar.
Boquillet said that he had support from other Diamond League promoters and he will push to make sure that removing the drug rule is high on the agenda at the body’s next meeting.
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“I wanted to invite Dwain this year but the pressure on me not to was too big,” Boquillet said. “It makes me mad. He served his time. I am pushing the other promoters to review the case.”
Boquillet said that, if Euro Meetings refuses to change its guidelines, he will go out on a limb and invite Chambers to next year’s Diamond League race regardless. “They are not keeping him out for the right reasons,” he said.
Chambers has scratched an improved living since admitting that he made £1,500 in the last six months of 2008. He is still barred from competing at the Olympics because of the British Olympic Association bylaw, but has won the European and world indoor titles in the past 18 months. Having run 9.99sec at the European Team Championships last weekend, he will be the favourite to win European gold in Barcelona next month.
First up are the Aviva European Trials and UK Championships that begin at the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham tonight. Chambers was beaten by Simeon Williamson a year ago, so will be hoping to cement his renaissance with a UK title.
Chambers, Martyn Rooney, Dai Greene and Jenny Meadows go into the weekend ranked No 1 in Europe this year, which bodes well for Barcelona, where Charles van Commenee, the UK Athletics head coach, will expect a huge improvement on the solitary gold medal won by Chambers and the rest of the sprint relay team four years ago.
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Britain’s two world champions, Phillips Idowu and Jessica Ennis, are also in action. Idowu will look for encouragement after being brought down to earth by Teddy Tamgho, the French sensation, for the past two weekends, while Ennis is eyeing Angie Thorp’s 14-year-old British 100 metres hurdles record, as well as competing in the long jump, high jump and shot put.
Tasha Danvers, the Olympic 400 metres hurdles bronze medal-winner, will miss the European Championships and is targeting the Commonwealth Games in October for her comeback from injury.