She will grow from this - Ato Boldon expects anti-doping experience to mature Briana Williams

DOHA, Qatar:

Though disappointed that she had to endure the challenges that she did, coach Ato Boldon believes 17-year-old Jamaican sprinter Briana Williams will grow psychologically from her experiences around her anti-doping violation.

Williams was given a public reprimand with no period of ineligibility by the Independent Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel on Thursday after their two-day hearing into her anti-doping violation at the National Senior Championships in June.

The double World Under-20 champion tested positive for the banned substance hydrochlorothiazide, but the Kent Gammon-led panel found that the athlete had no significant fault or negligence as the substance made its way into her system from contaminated tablets that were given to her by her guardian and that it was also established that she had no intention to cheat.

Boldon feels that Williams, who announced a few hours after the ruling that she was withdrawing from Jamaica’s team at the World Championships, will develop into a tougher athlete and individual from a mental perspective.

Bad but beneficial

“There are a lot of people who took shots at Briana while she was down, so I think in the long term, we may realise that this was something that was unfortunate, but maybe it will be beneficial for her,” said Boldon.

“It is no secret that Briana is going to be running against professionals in the near future and I think she will need that kind of bullet-proof skin to deal with competition at the highest level,” he added. “We know she is 17 now, but this process has forced her to grow up.”

Boldon, the former Trinidad and Tobago sprinting star, said that it was a challenge to protect the athlete from the conversation around her situation.

“I don’t know if it was possible to keep a 17-year-old insulated. When this thing happened, I told her to stay off the Internet. Telling a 17-year-old to stay off the Internet is like trying to tell someone not to breathe. That was never going to happen,” Boldon shared. “I know that a lot of very nasty things that were written about her she saw and she read, so I would have preferred for her not to go through that, but as my mother said, Briana had to grow up very quickly.”

There was discussion around whether the athlete would still attempt to travel to compete in the 100m in Doha against the IAAF Anti-Doping Rule 9, which indicates that she would not be eligible given the violation.

However, Williams put that to bed, announcing on Instagram on Thursday that she would withdraw from the team and focus on the coming season, given the emotional toll taken on her throughout the situation.

“I have decided to forgo competing at the World Championships considering the long trip to Doha and that the team has already started training for the relays,” Williams said.

“I am just relieved and thankful after what has been a very emotional summer. I would like to, once again, express my gratitude to everyone right across Jamaica who reached out to show support. I look forward to returning to the track for the 2020 season.

“Hopefully, I still have a chance to make the trip to Doha to watch Jamaica compete. I would like to wish all our athletes and coaches the very best. #LetsGetIt #TeamJamaica #OneLove.”

Jonielle Smith has been entered to replace her in the women’s 100m, where she will be joined by Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Elaine Thompson. This event’s heats begin today at 8:30 a.m. Jamaica time.

andre.lowe@gleanerjm.com