Masseur Denies Gatlin 'sabotage'

Justin Gatlin's masseur has denied allegations that he smeared a cream into the sprinter's groin to make him fail a drugs test earlier this year.

Gatlin's coach Trevor Graham accused masseur, Chris Whetstine, of sabotaging the sprinter's career because he was holding a grudge against the Olympic 100m champion. Whetstine, of Eugene, Oregon, refuted the claim. "Graham is not speaking on behalf of Justin Gatlin and the story about me is not true," he said. "I have fully co-operated with the investigation into this matter."

Whetstine has worked with elite athletes for 10 years and travelled with Marion Jones between 1998 and 2001, while also working with 200m runner Shawn Crawford. He is a consulting therapist to Nike Track and Field and has a private practice specialising in sports injury management and deep tissue therapy.

Graham has alleged that Whetstine used a tube of white cream for a massage that followed the Kansas Relays on April 22 of this year. "When I asked what is that? He said, 'Get away.' He then put the tube of cream in his pocket," claimed Graham. Later that day Gatlin failed the drugs test for having illegally high levels of testosterone in his body.

Graham claimed Whetstine blamed Gatlin for getting him sacked earlier in the year. The masseur was later reinstated.

Gatlin's positive test has left Graham himself at the centre of the drugs scandal. This is the tenth time in eight years that one of his athletes has failed a drugs test. Most notably, Tim Montgomery was stripped of his 100m world record last year. Gatlin stands to lose the current world record, shared with Jamaican Asafa Powell, and will receive a life ban should a B sample confirm the positive test.