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Adidas Suspends Contract with Sprinter Tyson Gay Over Failed Drug Test
Author: Scarinci Hollenbeck, LLC
Date: July 17, 2013
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In the aftermath of the Lance Armstrong scandal, athletic sponsors are taking a hard line with athletes who fail to pass doping drug tests. Adidas recently announced that it has dropped former double world sprint champion Tyson Gay over a failed drug test.
Only one day after the American sprinter tested positive for banned performance-enhancing substances, the sportswear company immediately dropped Gay’s talent agreement, noting that it will not tolerate any sports law violations carried out on the part of athletes it endorses.
“We are shocked by these recent allegations, and even if we presume his innocence until proven otherwise, our contract with Tyson is currently suspended,” the company said. “Adidas has a clear policy on doping and drug use. Each of the agreements with our athletes include a clear clause which states that the agreement shall be terminated by Adidas if the athlete is found guilty of the possession or use of drugs or any other prohibited substance by the relevant governing sports body having jurisdiction over the athlete.”
Gay recently won the 100- and 200-meter track competitions at U.S. national championships last month and was listed as the fastest man in the world this year, according to English publication Daily Mail. Gay, who has held sponsorship agreements with Adidas since 2005, said he will have the sample tested as early as this week, The Associated Press reports.
In a statement to the AP, Gay did not admit to using banned substances, but said that he put his “trust in someone and I was let down.”
“I don’t have a sabotage story,” said Gay. “I don’t have anything to say to make this seem like it was a mistake or it was on USADA’s (United States Anti-Doping Agency) hands, someone playing games. I don’t have any of those stories.”
The athlete also noted that he will take whatever punishment is handed down “like a man,” and has already pulled out of the USA’s World Championships team as well as the Diamond League meeting in Monaco.
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