LONDON, (Reuters) – Paula Radcliffe, world marathon record holder and one of Britain’s most popular athletes, has been cleared by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) of any allegation of doping.
Athletics’ world governing body offered a complete defence of Radcliffe on Friday amid a robust rebuttal of claims that it had ignored evidence of drug cheating by leading athletes for more than a decade.
The IAAF has sent a detailed response to British authorities, saying the allegations that they sat “idly by” amid a scandal were based on “inaccurate and unfounded scientific and legal argument.”
The vindication left the now-retired 41-year-old Radcliffe, one of the sport’s all-time endurance running greats, delighted but insistent that her reputation had been damaged by the ordeal she had faced since her name was linked with blood doping allegations.
“We want to eradicate doping from our sport but we can never put any innocent athlete through what I had to go through this summer,” Radcliffe told Sky Sports.
“Ms Radcliffe should never have been forced to come out and defend herself against such insinuations,” the IAAF concluded, adding that “the circumstances in which Ms Radcliffe came to be publicly accused are truly shocking.”
The IAAF’s defence of Radcliffe features in its long response to the British Parliament’s Culture, Media And Sport select committee hearing at which Members of Parliament discussed the doping allegations aired by German broadcaster ARD and the Sunday Times.
