Kenteris and Thanou Suspended Through 2006

By Mark Hoerrner

It was Athens, where Olympics were born. The two were bringing untold glory to their home country of Greece, especially Kenteris. After a successful gold medal performance in Sydney in 2000, Kenteris even had a ferryboat named after him. Thanou nailed a silver medal in Sydney. The two were arguably Greece’s most royal couple.

So where did it all go wrong?

It could have been cases of mistaken timing, miscommunication or just a lack of respect for the testing procedures, but leading up to the 2004 Olympics, the couple missed mandatory drug tests in Tel Aviv, Chicago, and Athens. When the two missed the testing on the eve of the Athens Olympics, the two were suspended along with their coach, Christos Tzekos.

The pair claimed that a motorcycle accident had been the cause of their delinquency, not their actions. Subsequent investigations by police revealed little support for the accident, as the Associated Press reported that police had found no evidence of a crash and no witnesses to the accident. Greek officials filed criminal charges against the duo.

The irony of the suspension of the two national heroes is that they’ve yet to test positive for drug use. Prior to Athens, the two had both been tested within 10 months of the Olympics and passed easily.

Doping rules, however, are set in stone. Governing bodies are not. After the International Association of Athletics Federations provisionally suspended the two athletes for two years, the Greek track and field federation overruled the IAAF. An appeal was made to the Court at Arbitration for Sport and the body upheld the original IAAF ruling pending a final decision. On June 24, 2006, the couple came forward and admitted to missing the testing deadlines of two years earlier.

The good news for the athletes is that their suspension, which now becomes formal, will come to an end on Dec. 22, 2006, just six months away.

The couple placed much of the blame on their former coach, Tzekos, with whom they split just after the Athens incident. They told reporters worldwide that Tzekos was about as likely to find a testing location as he was to discover the Lost Dutchman mine. But it’s not just that Tzekos was likely absent-minded. Authorities have charged Tzekos with purposely obstructing the tests and for trafficking in banned substances through a nutritional supplements company Tzekos owns.

The web of missed testing sites reads like stereo instructions, with one athlete missing tests here and there and the other at various sites and failing to notify the testing organization of changes in address. Kenteris was exonerated in Chicago, but found guilty for Tel Aviv. Thanou was fine for Tel Aviv, but found guilty for Chicago.

So the biggest embarrassment in Greek sports history may have finally come to an end, giving Greeks hope for future wins in future games. But the events bring into perspective a legalistic and not all too enviable side of the competition—rules without exceptions. If the IAAF had a rule that allowed them to test the athletes on the spot, then doping issues might not carry such fear and might actually have more athletes in compliance.

Now, however, Greeks just hope that two years off the track circuit have not diminished Kenteris’ and Thanou’s ability to bring home the medallions.