American record holder Tyson Gay is entered in a 100m race on July 3 in Lausanne, Switzerland, his first race after his retroactive one-year doping ban ends June 23.
“Lausanne has always been one of my favorite meets, and I’m thrilled to have it be my opening meet of 2014,” Gay said in a press release. “I have run fast times here. I have been training for several months, and will be ready on July 3.”
Gay is scheduled to run against Justin Gatlin, one of his 2012 Olympic 4x100m relay teammates who may lose their medal after the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency said Gay first began using prohibited substances before the London Olympics.
Gay revealed one of his failed drug tests last July 14, 10 days after he won last year’s Lausanne 100m in 9.79 seconds, and hasn’t raced since. USADA announced his suspension May 2, saying all of Gay’s results since July 15, 2012, have been disqualified.
Gay has stayed in the news without talking much since the ban announcement.
“There’s a lot for me to tell,” Gay said the next day, without going into detail.
He also reportedly offered to pay back some $500,000 in prize money and appearance fees to meets and was sued by former coach Jon Drummond, who said USADA is trying to ban him for life after being implicated by Gay.
Gay, 31, is the fastest American ever in the 100m, clocking 9.69 in 2009. Gatlin, 32, is tied with Maurice Greene as the second fastest U.S. man ever at 9.79. Gay and Gatlin went one-two in the 100m at last year’s U.S. Championships, 9.75 to 9.89.
Gatlin, the reigning Olympic 100m bronze medalist and world silver medalist, is undefeated this season (Usain Bolt is scheduled to race for the first time in 2014 on June 17). Gatlin said he believed running in the 9.6s was possible after he won the Pre Classic in a wind-aided 9.76 on Saturday.
Olympic 100m and 200m silver medalist Yohan Blake is slated to race 200m in Lausanne.
