Hurray for Albert Salazar. I’ve said it before, and I’m saying it now. The accusations and the four-year ban of the world’s greatest distance coach are pure baloney — they are the insupportable maunderings of jealous attention-seeking low-energy fat cat athletic overseer virtuecrats. Already, the self-righteous pecksniffs of the gutter press are shaming those, like world marathon record holder Paula Radcliffe, who would dare to defy the universal media fattwa by defending Alberto.
See my previous article, “Alberto Salazar and the Pecksniffs’ (August 7, 2015).
I am very happy and relieved, but not surprised, to see that Alberto is set on making these bloated sportocrats put up or shut up. Here is his statement on the Nike website regarding the ban.
September 30, 2019
I am shocked by the outcome today. Throughout this six-year investigation my athletes and I have endured unjust, unethical and highly damaging treatment from USADA. This is demonstrated by the misleading statement released by Travis Tygart stating that we put winning ahead of athlete safety. This is completely false and contrary to the findings of the arbitrators, who even wrote about the care I took in complying with the World Anti-Doping code:
“The Panel notes that the Respondent does not appear to have been motivated by any bad intention to commit the violations the Panel found. In fact, the Panel was struck by the amount of care generally taken by Respondent to ensure that whatever new technique or method or substance he was going to try was lawful under the World Anti-Doping Code, with USADA’s witness characterizing him as the coach they heard from the most with respect to trying to ensure that he was complying with his obligations.”
I have always ensured the WADA code is strictly followed. The Oregon Project has never and will never permit doping. I will appeal and look forward to this unfair and protracted process reaching the conclusion I know to be true. I will not be commenting further at this time.
I love Alberto and raise his flag. He’s welcome at our house for dinner anytime. God bless him. He is an honorable man. If he were not an athlete, I would commission a statue of him wearing a beard, smoking a cigar and telling the Bureau-Fats to stick it where the sun don’t shine. I hope Alberto and Nike will do the right thing, and sue the USADA right down to their skivvies.
— Sri Yukteswar Giri