DOHA, Oct 2: Donavan Brazier shrugged off the doping controversy surrounding his Nike Oregon Project training base on Tuesday to blast to 800 metres gold at the World Championships.
The 22-year-old American produced a tactical masterclass at Doha�s Khalifa Stadium to surge away from the field in a championship record time of 1min 42.34sec, breaking the previous mark which had stood for 32 years.
Brazier is one of several World Championships athletes based at the Nike-backed Oregon Project, whose leader Alberto Salazar was hit with a four-year ban for doping violations after a four-year investigation by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). Brazier revealed after his win he had been unaware of the investigation against the controversial running guru when he joined the training group last year.
�I didn�t know anything about it,� Brazier said. �I just woke up to a text this morning and found out.�
Brazier emphasised that he had little contact with Salazar at the Oregon Project, where he is coached by Pete Julian.�
�From the start, I was only in contact with Pete Julian,� Brazier said. �I was never coached by Alberto, and I never asked to be coached by Alberto. When the investigation started I didn�t even know what the Oregon Project was.� � AFP
