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 Get a FREE trial Subscription to the TRACK PROFILE Report TODAY! TRACK PROFILE REPORT #112 16-June-2004 JONES CALLS FOR PUBLIC HEARING, BISLETT DIRECTOR DENIES 'REFUSING' JONES In an ongoing campaign to clear her name, triple Olympic champion Marion Jones continued her offensive against the United States Anti-Doping Agency, calling upon the agency to hold a public hearing into its ongoing doping investigation. "I am not going to engage in the United States Anti-Doping Agency's secret kangaroo court," Jones said during a news conference today in San Francisco. "I will answer questions in a public forum that will be open for the entire world to see, hear and evaluate." After meeting with USADA officials last month to discuss possible evidence against her, the agency contacted Jones again with follow-up questions. Jones said she would fully cooperate, but not "behind closed doors." "I will answer all the questions USADA is asking of me for the third time. However, this time I will not answer them in secret and behind closed doors. I will answer them in public in the light of day so the world can hear the questions, hear my responses, see the information and see for themselves that I am telling the truth," she said. Jones added that her legal team would be contacting the U.S. Senate to request the hearings. Jones was one of several athletes who provided testimony last fall to a federal Grand Jury investigating the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative, or BALCO, an investigation that led to four indictments. Last week, USADA sent letters to five U.S. track and field athletes, informing them that cases of possible illegal drug use will be pursued against them. Jones was not one of the five recipients, but said she was tired of "the rumor-mongering, innuendos, unnamed sources and anonymous leaks." "Hopefully, I'm sending a message to USADA that I want this done," she said. "Tell us what you know," she said, directing her comment to the agency. Reiterating her frustration with the speed of the process, Jones said, "I want this done yesterday." In an effort to use some of the testimony provided during last fall's Grand Jury hearings, the anti-doping agency is seeking to reduce the burden of proof in arbitration cases from "beyond a reasonable doubt," to a lower burden termed "comfortable satisfaction," a move that has alarmed some legal scholars, and a process Jones characterized as "extremely unfair." During the news conference, Jones repeated her statement that she has "never, ever" used performance-enhancing drugs. "Those who truly know me know that I would do nothing wrong. That's why I'm pleading with USADA to open this process." Patiently answering reporter’s questions about her links to the rogue lab, Jones said that she began using the BALCO zinc supplement ZMA in 1999, and continued receiving it from the lab through 2001. "I still take it," she said, but purchases the product from retail stores. Jones said that no one from her team tested the supplement for possible contamination. "We had no reason to believe it was contaminated. We sought out a company I thought was reputable." Jones said she has "no reason to be concerned" by any documents the agency may have. ""I've tested negative every single time I was tested." The case took some unusual twists in recent days. Last week, Jones's ex-Husband, shot-putter C.J. Hunter, met with federal officials investigating the case. Trevor Graham, her former coach, was also questioned. Adding an odd chapter to the BALCO saga, attorneys for BALCO found Victor Conte, Jr. sent a letter to the White House, requesting President George Bush to help secure a plea agreement. "We need to do everything possible to send a clean Olympic team to Athens," the letter, also sent to Attorney General John Ashcroft, read. The scandal has followed Jones throughout the spring as she resumed competition after missing last season to give birth to her son, Tim. Last month, widely circulated accounts reported that meet directors of the Evergood Bislett Games in Bergen, Norway and Stockholm's DN Galan refused to invite Jones to their meetings until all BALCO-related investigations were concluded. Last Thursday, Svein Arne Hansen, director of the Bislett meet, apparently recanting his comments, denied the widely-reported refusal. On Monday (07-June), Jones reiterated that she long ago rejected Hansen's offer to compete at the Bergen meet, the first of the six-meet TDK Golden League series. "They had approached me a number of times about attending their meet and I rejected a number of months ago," Jones said on in Ostrava, Czech Republic. "I think it's just a way for him to get back publicly at us for deciding not to compete in his meet. I've stated in the past that I think his meet is very unorganized, and I said a number of times that I would not go back there to compete unless he decides to pay for my son's Harvard education.” ----- ----------------------------------------- The TRACK PROFILE REPORT is a news and feature service published by the Track Profile News Service. In addition to regularly dispatched news, profile and interview features, subscribers also receive exclusive on-site updates from major national and international competitions, usually within 24 hours. Copyright (c) 2004 by Bob Ramsak and TRACK PROFILE. All rights reserved. Reproduction, republication, reposting and retransmission in ANY form is strictly prohibited without express permission from the editor. Small portions may be reproduced ONLY if accompanied by source citation and *ADVANCE* notice in writing to Track Profile. Please contact the editor at bob@trackprofile.com for reprint permission. ] ----- ----------------------------------------- The TRACK PROFILE Report is sponsored in part by Shooting Star Media, Inc., publisher of the magazines American Track & Field, ATF Athletes Only, and California Track & Running News. Besides its publications, Shooting Star Media manages three websites and is an advertising representative for The Running Network, a group of 28 regional and national specialty running magazines. American Track & Field [ http://www.american-trackandfield.com ] is a professional magazine geared to coaches, athletes and enthusiasts of track & field, race walking, road racing and cross country running. Links to all Shooting Star Media publications can be found on its website at http://www.shootingstarmediainc.com . ------ ----------------------------------------- Individual subscriptions: $40/year. To make payment arrangements, send an email to bob@trackprofile.com or you can pay by credit card via paypal at [ http://www.trackprofile.com/dispatch.html ]. Likewise, direct all comments, suggestions, questions, and corrections via email to bob@trackprofile.com . More info at http://www.trackprofile.com . END – TPR #112 - 16-June-2004  [ $15.99 - Trade paperback ] [ $6.95 - PDF eBook edition ] |
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