(REUTERS) – The coach of the world’s fastest man said yesterday he had no problem with sprinters Dwain Chambers and Justin Gatlin competing in the London Olympics after serving doping bans. “I don’t believe that somebody should be sentenced to death or banned for life,” Glen Mills, who coaches Jamaican triple Olympic gold medallist Usain Bolt, told an international teleconference.
“It is unfortunate that it happens but I have no problem with the rules. The rules are across the board for everybody.
“If you are caught and suspended, the sport allows you to return and compete.”
Gatlin, the 2004 Olympic 100 metres champion and 2005 double world sprint champion, served a four-year doping ban before returning to athletics in 2010.
“His recent performance at the world indoors, where he won (60 metres), indicates he is back to the level where he was,” Mills said.
Gatlin is eligible under U.S. rules to compete in London if he finishes in the top three at the U.S. trials in June.
The picture is not so clear for former world indoor champion Chambers, who has served a two-year ban.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport will decide next week whether to uphold the British Olympic Association ban from future Games for any athlete who has committed a doping offence.