Agency slaps coach Graham with lifetime ban

Track coach Trevor Graham received a lifetime ban from the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency Tuesday for his role in helping his athletes obtain performance-enhancing drugs.

Graham has been banned from participating in any event sanctioned by the U.S. Olympic Committee, the IAAF, USA Track and Field or any other group that participates in the World Anti-Doping Agency program.

He was convicted in May of one count of lying to federal investigators about his relationship to an admitted steroids dealer. He’s still awaiting sentencing.

Graham already was banned from all USOC-sponsored facilities and had essentially become a pariah in his sport, connected with too many athletes involved in doping – Marion Jones and former 100-meter world-record holders Justin Gatlin and Tim Montgomery to name a few.

“There has been a belief out there that coaches, doctors and other people who support athletes were somehow outside the long arm of the rules,” USADA CEO Travis Tygart said. “This is a strong reminder that they’re not, and that we’ll use our authority to hold coaches accountable if they assist and aid athletes in doping.”

It was Graham who anonymously provided a vial of “the clear,” a then undetectable steroid to USADA, blowing the whistle on what became known as the BALCO case.

USADA began its case against Graham in November 2006. He was found to have committed four violations of the WADA code:

•Tampering with or attempting to tamper with any part of doping control.

•Possession of prohibited substances and methods.

•Trafficking in any prohibited substance or prohibited method.

•Administration or attempted administration of a prohibited substance or prohibited method to any athlete or assisting, encouraging, aiding, abetting, covering up or any other type of complicity involving an anti-doping rules violation or any attempted violation.