Christian Coleman's prospects of attempting to win gold at the Tokyo Olympics are in doubt after he was provisionally suspended for whereabouts failures.
The American missed three drugs tests in 2019 and has disputed the third finding, confirmed by the Athletics Integrity Unit.
The failures are in breach of World Athletics Anti-Doping rules. A final decision on the provisional suspension is subject to a hearing.
The AIU confirms a provisional suspension against Christian Coleman of the USA for whereabouts failures, a violation of the @WorldAthletics Anti-Doping Rules.
Find out more ⬇️https://t.co/opInfkVlnV#AIUNews#CleanSport pic.twitter.com/JPMAh41Eke— Athletics Integrity Unit (@aiu_athletics) June 17, 2020
Coleman won gold in the sprint at the World Athletics Championships in Doha last year. He also helped the United States win gold in the 4 x 100 meters relay.
Three whereabouts failures in the space of a year can lead to a potential two-year ban from the sport.
The 24-year-old says he 'never has and never will use performance-enhancing supplements or drugs'.
He defended his reputation on his social media page, saying he was Christmas shopping on the 9th December 2019 and was unaware of an attempt to test him until the following day.
He admitted responsibility for missing a test on January 16th, 2019, with the second missed test a result of a filing failure on April 26th of last year.
Coleman says he is 'willing to take a drug test EVERY single day for the rest of my career for all I care to prove my innocence'.
The US Anti-Doping Agency previously dropped a charge against Coleman before the Doha games.
