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Coach says sprinter was set up for positive test

By TIMES WIRES
Published July 31, 2006

WASHINGTON - U.S. sprinter Justin Gatlin unwittingly had testosterone cream massaged into his legs by a masseuse who carried a grudge against him before the April race at which he tested positive for steroids, Gatlin's coach Trevor Graham told the Washington Post by phone Sunday.

Graham said Gatlin, who faces a lifetime ban from track and field for the positive test for the anabolic steroid, thought the cream was a harmless lotion. Graham said when he walked in on the massage session the masseuse hurriedly stuffed a white jar of the substance in his pocket.

Graham declined to name the masseuse, saying he did not want to jeopardize the case.

"We know who the person is who actually did this," Graham said by phone from Raleigh, N.C., the home base of his Sprint Capitol team. "Justin is devastated. Myself, too. We're extremely (upset) right now. We are trying to go out and make sure we can prove his innocence, and we hope this individual has the guts to come forward and say he did it."

Gatlin's lawyer, Cameron Myler, declined to confirm Graham's account Sunday but said Gatlin intended to prove he was not responsible for the positive test.

TENNIS

Easy win for Clijsters

Kim Clijsters won her fourth Bank of the West Classic title in six years, effortlessly beating Patty Schnyder 6-4, 6-2 in Stanford, Calif., to stay unbeaten in this event since 2002.

Clijsters overwhelmed her Swiss opponent with sharp serves, then ran her ragged with back-and-forth groundstrokes to win her 32nd career title and her second this season, after a victory in Warsaw in May.

The well-heeled crowd at the tournament on Stanford's campus cheered loudly for its local favorite.

COUNTRYWIDE CLASSIC: Tommy Haas won his third title of the year and second Los Angeles championship in three years with a 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 victory over Dmitry Tursunov.

CROATIAN OPEN: Stanislas Wawrinka won his first ATP title when favored Novak Djokovic retired with breathing problems during the first set in Umag, Croatia. The unseeded Wawrinka, of Switzerland, was trailing 1-3 in the tiebreaker when Djokovic, the fourth seed from Serbia, quit.

GENERALI OPEN: Agustin Calleri claimed his second career title by beating Juan Ignacio Chela 7-6 (9-7), 6-2, 6-3 in an all-Argentine final in Kitzbuehel, Austria.

BUDAPEST GRAND PRIX: Anna Smashnova of Israel became the first player to defend her event title, defeating Lourdes Dominguez Lino of Spain 6-1, 6-3 in Hungary.

BOXING

Jones leaves future vague

Roy Jones Jr. was discussing whom he might like to fight next, if the money men "make it worth my while," that is.

But in another moment late Saturday, Jones sounded like a content 37-year-old, now a six-time champion in four weight classes; a man finally satisfied with being able to exit on his terms.

Does that mean retirement for the man widely known throughout the 1990s as the world's best pound-for-pound fighter?

"I don't have a clue. ... I'm not leaning any way," Jones said after regaining some of his reputation, at least the showman part. He pranced and preened to a methodical 12-round unanimous decision over frustrated former champion Prince Badi Ajamu in Boise, Idaho, to win the NABO light heavyweight championship.

Each judge scored Jones' first win in 32 months 119-106.

"I wanted to go out my way," Jones (50-4) said. "If I wanted to, I could go out right now."

ET CETERA

CYCLING: T-Mobile will replace manager Olaf Ludwig with American Bob Stapleton in November, shaking up its team in light of doping scandals. Jan Ullrich, the 1997 Tour de France winner, was fired after being linked to performance-enhancing drugs.

HOCKEY: Sabres center Paul Gaustad avoided salary arbitration, signing a two-year, $1.425-million contract. Gaustad will make $675,000 next season, slight raise over the $450,000 he made as a rookie last season.

SHOOTING: Artem Khadjibekov won the men's 50-meter rifle 3-position event and led Russia to the team title at the world championships in Zagreb, Croatia. Also, Penghui Zhang won the men's 25-meter rapid fire pistol and spearheaded China's comfortable win in the team event.

[Last modified July 31, 2006, 02:10:02]