Glasgow 2014: Jamieson not sure rivals are clean

MICHAEL Jamieson acknowledged yesterday that, when he competes for Scotland in the Commonwealth Games this week, he will not be sure that all his opponents are clean.

Michael Jamieson is an outspoken opponent of doping in sport

An outspoken opponent of doping in sport, the Olympic breaststroke silver medallist from London 2012 insisted that the problem extends far beyond his own sport of swimming.

And, while others choose to avoid the subject for fear of causing controversy, the Glaswegian said he thought the more people who speak out about it the better.

“Across all sports in any event, I don’t think athletes can say with 100 per cent certainty any more that everyone in their event is clean,” the 25-year-old said. “I’m not uncomfortable about speaking about it. I don’t think people should avoid talking about it.

“It’s not something that’s in my mind constantly. When I leave this room, I won’t go away thinking: ‘I hope everyone in my race is clean.’

“It’s not something that’s at the forefront of my mind. It’s just an underlying aspect that I think not enough athletes are willing to talk about.

“I’m being tested all the time. I have a whereabouts system where I have to let the testers know where I am every single day.

“I’m on there all the time trying to update it, because any slip-ups can result in strikes [against your name]. Sometimes the public see strikes as missed tests because of something a bit sinister.”

One of the strongest favourites to win gold for Scotland at the Games, Jamieson, who competes in the 200 metres on Thursday, admitted he had at times been affected by the amount of attention on him.

“I think I’ve dealt with it okay,” he said of his status as Team Scotland’s poster boy for the Games.

“It wouldn’t be natural if I didn’t have a little meltdown about it now and then.”