Christian Coleman is incredibly fast. In the introductory round before the 100-meter final at the 2017 World Cup in London, he scurried so fast through the specially decorated with fireworks and colorful illuminated panel entrance that he was through before the stadium announcer read his name and the audience could cheer him. He was in the lead for a long time in the race - until Justin Gatlin pushed himself to the top.
Three hundredths of a second had been missing Coleman for the gold medal on the prestigious route. Two years later, it is now extremely short for Coleman, but this time in his favor. However, the most important decision this year for the Sprinter was not on the tartan track, but in the office buildings of the US antidoping agency Usada in Colorado Springs.
And this time it was not about three hundredths of a second - but presumably one day.
"Missed Test" or "Filing Failure"?
Coleman hit the headlines at the end of August when it became known that the Sprinter had incurred three so-called "Whereabouts Failures" within a year, which can roughly be translated as "missed doping tests". According to the anti-doping code of the World Anti-Doping Agency Wada, this is a possible "Rule Violation" that can be severely punished.
The first "Whereabouts Failure" occurred on June 6, 2018, the second on January 16, 2019 and the third on April 26, 2019. The matter seemed clear: Coleman had to worry, it threatened at least up to two years of suspension. The participation in the World Cup and at the Olympic Games in the coming year were in danger, in both competitions Coleman is considered a gold medal candidate.
But apparently the Usada was a bit premature - or not quite regelfest. Because a deep look into the Wada rules "Testing and Investigations" Coleman brought the rescue: under "Whereabout Failures" fall namely two offenses: On the one hand the "Missed Test", on the other hand, according to Usada in the first and third offense Coleman present "Filing Failure" for which special rules apply, which should relieve the sprinter in the end.
Are you already confused?
A quick attempt to sort out the terminology: According to Usada and the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) of the World Federation IAAF, a "filing failure" occurs when an athlete has not provided all the necessary location information for the coming quarter, or it is incomplete, inaccurate or late entered into the reporting system - and the doping control the athlete therefore could not meet.
Rescue rule supplement
A "missed test", on the other hand, occurs when the doping control officer can not meet or reach the athlete during a 60-minute window, which the athlete himself determines for each day and which most put into the morning hours. In the case of Coleman this was the case according to Usada in the second missed test.
The redeeming rule supplement for Coleman, which was tested negatively 20 times by the Usada in 2018 and 2019, is found in Wada's "Testing and Investigations" framework. It says, mutatis mutandis, that in a so-called "Filing Failure" is not the actual day of missed doping test as the date of the infringement, but the first day of the corresponding quarter.
www.wada-ama.org
The Usada discussed with the Wada and ruled that Coleman's first offense would be backdated from 6 June 2018 to 1 April. Since the third appointment was also a "filing failure", it was probably also dated back to April 1, 2019 - even if it was not communicated. Thus, the dates of the two tests would be one year and one day apart. The result: The Usada spoke freely to Coleman on Monday night.
Criticism of the Usada
This process is primarily like a loophole that Coleman was able to exploit thanks to a good lawyer, but Usada's actions have also provoked criticism in the US - especially the fact that the agency did not seem to know or misappropriate the official rules. The Usada did not want to comment on the request of SPIEGEL to explain why the rule application was apparently not known.
Boss Travis Tygart is quoted in Monday's Usada press release as saying: "Every athlete is entitled to the presumption of innocence until his case is settled by the established court case, which is certainly the case for Mr. Coleman, who has not committed a violation, according to Usada and is fully eligible under the Rules. "
The 100-meter final at the World Championships in Doha can therefore start with Christian Coleman. If he qualifies.