While admitting recent doping scandals ensnaring big name sprinters such as Tyson Gay and Asafa Powell have definitely hurt the sport, Usain Bolt insists he's running clean.
"Definitely, it's going to set us back a little bit," Bolt told reporters Thursday as they convened for a Diamond League meet in London, his first race there since winning three gold medals at last year's Olympics. "But as a person, I can't focus on this."
The world’s self-described fastest man is slated to run in the 100 meters and be on the Brazilian 4x100 relay team at the event, all in preparation for the upcoming world championships in Moscow.
"I still have world championships, everyone is stepping up their game, so I have to really focus on that," he said. "I am just trying to work hard, run fast and hopefully help people to forget what has happened and just move on."
To that end, Bolt took great pains in assuring all his many fans he will not be the next one to fail them. "I was made to inspire people and to run, and I was given the gift and that's what I do," said the six-time Olympic champion said. "I am confident in myself and my team, the people I work with. And I know I am clean.”
Both Powell and Gay claim they failed drug tests because they trusted people they didn't know well. Even the prospect of that happening doesn’t seem like something Bolt is overly concerned with.
"You have to be careful as an athlete what you do and what you ingest, the food you eat and stuff like that,” he said. "But I am not worried because … I have a great team around me to make sure everything goes smoothly."
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