A national sigh of relief

A NATIONAL sigh of relief has greeted the announcement that Olympic icon Merlene Ottey has been cleared of drug charges. It would have been tragic if a glittering athletic career, which has brought her and her country such honour and glory, had ended in shame and disgrace. This is so because our greatest sports heroes have inspired patriotic feeling on a scale which promotes national unity more readily that anything else.

It is probably true, however, as her coach has said, that the damage to Merlene herself is irreparable. And even if she graces the Olympic stage for a final lap the drug allegation will remain an indelible memory.

And this is sad because it happened when so many others in so many other sports have fallen prey to greed. For that is surely the underlying motivation in the age of professional sport.

Track athletes now face the tape as well as test tubes in the lab. Cricket, the game of gentlemen, is now a grab bag of fixes which shame its pedigree and antiquity.

There is still room for clean winners, however, in which we are happy Merlene will retake her honoured place.

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