Richard Kilty says he will never forgive CJ Ujah for costing him his Olympic medal.
Six months after winning sprint relay silver in Tokyo, Kilty and team mates had it confirmed that they are to be stripped of it due to Ujah’s failed drugs test.
“It’s officially gone and it’s utterly devastating,” said the Teeside star. “As a team mate I feel let down. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forgive him.”
Ujah is the third Briton, after 1988 Judo player Kerrith Brown and 2002 slalom skier Alain Baxter, to test positive at an Olympics.
But he is the first whose actions have cost innocent team mates the greatest moment of their sporting careers.
“My dream was always to give my son an Olympic medal to take in and show all the other kids at school,” Kilty said.
“My family and friends had a surprise party booked for me. There was a parade planned around my town in Teeside.
“But then the news broke and all that just came tumbling down. Rather than a homecoming celebrating our achievement, it was coming home to explain.
“`What went on? Have you still got your medal? Does your team mate take drugs?
“I didn’t even want to leave the house. It was just exhausting trying to explain myself. We didn’t hear nothing from CJ so I had no idea.”
The first they did hear from Ujah was a Zoom call six weeks ago in which he told them he thought the infraction was down to contaminated supplements.
The 27-year old admitted to them they were not batch tested, therefore uncertified for safe use by Informed Sport, as required by British Athletics.
“As a team mate I feel let down,” said Kilty. “We have people working full-time (at UK anti-doping) who do an incredible job educating us: check your supplements, Informed Sport only, update your Adams."
Adams - Anti-Doping Administration & Management System - centralises doping control-related information and makes it easy for the athletes to stay on top of their daily testing commitment.
“Only CJ knows the truth but we’ve got two scenarios here,” Kilty added.
“Either CJ’s taken drugs or he has taken supplements which are not tested. Either way it’s reckless and it’s not playing by the rules.
“And sadly it’s affected his career and three of our careers, our families, absolutely everything. It’s a tragedy for all of us involved.
“He’s apologised to us and our families, he’s genuinely upset, but I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forgive him because me, Zharnel and Nethaneel have lost a medal at the hands of his mistakes.
“We’ve worked so, so hard the last six years to create that brotherhood and to finally reach the pinnacle and win an Olympic medal.
"To lose it because one person has just been sloppy and reckless with what’s gone into their body.. it’s heartbreaking.”
