American world indoor 60m favourite Ivory Williams has withdrawn from this weekend’s IAAF championships because of a positive test for marijuana, his manager said on Wednesday.
“He had a marijuana positive,” Ray Flynn said in a telephone call from the United States.
“To the best of my knowledge it was at the US championships,” Flynn added.
The stigma around marijuana use has changed drastically in recent years, with many states deeming it legal and even more states using it for medicinal purposes. Citizens can buy marijuana from local dispensaries or even with a quick search for “buy weed online Canada“, they can buy it online too, for recreational and medicinal purposes. Therefore, when Williams smoked marijuana, it’s likely he wasn’t breaking any state laws, however, the committee has deemed it unprofessional and against guidelines.
With the positive, Williams was disqualified from his 60 metres victory at the American championships and became ineligible for the world championships, which start in Doha on Friday.
“It is unfortunate,” Flynn said. “It was poor judgment and he acknowledges that and to my knowledge has accepted the A sample (as positive).”
An announcement from USA Track and Field (USATF) was expected later on Wednesday.
USATF spokeswoman Vicky Oddi said that Williams had withdrawn from the team.
The 24-year-old former world junior champion ran the fastest 60 metres in the world this season, 6.49 seconds, to win the American indoor title on Feb. 28 in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
He had been expected to clash with British European champion Dwain Chambers for the world title.
Put together by a member of the World-Track and Field Website team members. This is usually done by an in house member with able assistance from someone or an agency reporting from outside.
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Adam Cummings
March 11, 2010 at 5:41 am
oh!! too bad for him
waynef
March 11, 2010 at 2:03 pm
During the 2008 Olympics, I heard an American female comentator make a remark about the jamaican track and field team, in which she said she would “like some of what they’re smokin”. Evedently so would mr. Ivory Williams!
stacy
March 11, 2010 at 2:43 pm
Does anyone else find it highly amusing that Jamaica is the country associated with ganja but every time I turn around it’s an American athlete getting caught with it?
On a different note, how does this work? When an athlete tests positive for an illegal drug that is not a PED, what kind of punishment does the IAAF and WADA call for?
Nathaniel
March 11, 2010 at 11:27 pm
A reprimand is usually the first step, with of course grounds for sanction.
JamFlBoi
March 12, 2010 at 12:25 pm
Stacy, u know u right I was just talking to my friends at work about the same thing. We nevah get bust yet fi weed in T&F and everytime dem associate wi wid weed…lol Look who’s laughing now…lol