UK Athletics say Mo Farah’s medical files will face independent exam

Mo Farah’s medical data will be analysed in an independent investigation ordered by UK Athletics, in light of the doping claims against the double Olympic champion’s American coach, Alberto Salazar.

Coach Alberto Salazar, centre, hugs Britain's Mo Farah, right, and US athlete Galen Rupp following the men's 5,000-metre final at the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) World Championships in Daegu. Britain's Olympic and world champion Mo Farah said on June 6, 2015 he had no plans to end his relationship with Salazar despite allegations the American had encouraged his athletes to use illegal substances. A BBC documentary, broadcast on Wednesday, alleges Salazar, 56, had encouraged athletes including America's Olympic 10,000m silver medallist Galen Rupp, a training partner of Farah's, to use illegal substances. Both Salazar and Rupp have insisted they are innocent of the allegations. Juon Yeon-Je / AFP

Jun 08, 2015

Associated Press

LONDON // Mo Farah’s medical data will be analysed in an independent investigation ordered by UK Athletics, in light of the doping claims against the double Olympic champion’s American coach.

Ed Warner, chairman of UK Athletics, said on Monday the investigation will look at “blood data, supplements data – everything surrounding his medical treatment”.

“We need to make sure there’s nothing else there we haven’t seen, we’re not aware of,” Warner told BBC radio.

In a story by ProPublica and published by the BBC last week, long-distance running coach Alberto Salazar was accused of using doping practices for his athletes at the Nike Oregon Project.

Farah, the world and Olympic 5,000 and 10,000-metre champion, is Salazar’s star athlete.

There are no suggestions of any wrongdoing by Farah but he is concerned about the damage to his reputation and withdrew from the Diamond League event in Birmingham on Sunday so he could return to the United States and “seek answers to my questions”.

Salazar has denied any wrongdoing.

“It may well be that the outcome of our own investigation says there’s nothing untoward going on as far as we can uncover in any way, shape or form around British athletics and a British athlete,” Warner said.

He said that even if nothing untoward is discovered UK Athletics will consider ending their ties with Salazar, who is also an endurance consultant to UK Athletics, “because of the reputational damage that could be caused”.

Salazar was accused by his former assistant, Steve Magness, of violating anti-doping rules and encouraging doping by one of his top runners, Galen Rupp. The American won the silver medal in the 10,000m at the London Olympics in 2012, finishing behind Farah. Rupp also denies any wrongdoing.

Farah has said he will not break ties with Salazar as there is no clear evidence against the American.

“If I was a close mate of Mo’s and he was asking me personally, ‘What do you think I should do?’ I might have been inclined to say, ‘Do you know what? The easiest thing for you to do right now is to suspend that relationship, take a breather, see how it all plays out, run the circuit in the summer in Europe ... and see what transpires’ ... nothing has been proven against Alberto Salazar,” Warner said.