Richard Kilty insists he will never forgive CJ Ujah after losing Olympic medal
Great Britain will be stripped of the 4x100m relay silver won at the Tokyo Games after Ujah tested positive for a banned substance
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Your support makes all the difference.Richard Kilty does not believe he will ever forgive “reckless” CJ Ujah for the failed drugs test which will see him lose his Olympic silver medal.
It was announced on Friday that Great Britain were being stripped of the 4x100m relay silver won at last summer’s Tokyo Games after Ujah was found to have committed an anti-doping rule violation by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Ujah, who tested positive for the prohibited substances ostarine and S-23, said in a statement he had “unknowingly consumed a contaminated supplement” and apologised to his “team-mates, their families and support teams”.
Kilty revealed Ujah had spoken to his team-mates – Zharnel Hughes and Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake were the other members of the relay team that won silver – via Zoom a couple of months earlier to explain his situation and apologise.
The 32-year-old, though, says the fallout will always remain tough to stomach.
“What he has done has been reckless,” Kilty told national newspapers.
“Everything has been a team effort to get to that position to be part of the British 4×100 strike four.
“Now he’s made that mistake I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forgive him because me, Zharnel and Nethaneel have lost a medal at the hands of his mistakes.
“CJ is ultimately going to be the one who is going to get banned himself — it is affecting his own career, but again we’ve worked so, so, so hard.
“We finally reached the pinnacle and won an Olympic medal, and then we lose it because one person has just been sloppy with what’s gone into their body. It’s heartbreaking.”
Kilty felt let down by his Ujah’s actions.
“For the last 20 years of my career – the same as the other two lads – we have worked our asses off. We have followed the rules, in and out,” he said.
“I know for a fact that I’m never going to fail a drug test for two reasons – one, I don’t take drugs; two – every supplement and everything that I put into my body, that’s on me and I make sure whatever goes into my body is checked.”
Kilty added: “Only he knows the truth. Either way, it’s reckless.
“Sadly, it’s affected his career and three of our careers, our families, absolutely everything. It’s a tragedy for all of us involved.
“I could look him [Ujah] in the eye, but could he look me in the eye and tell the truth? That is the question.
“Only he knows the truth. Only he knows. He has got to live with it.”
Mitchell-Blake, meanwhile, was in action on Saturday at the Muller Indoor Grand Prix in Birmingham, where he failed to advance from his 60 metres heat after finishing seventh.
The 27-year-old said afterwards when asked about the news of the quartet losing the silver: “I was happy that some news came out so we can actually get the process going.
“But then obviously it’s a nail in the coffin saying you’re getting stripped of your Olympic silver medal. It hasn’t really 100 per cent sunk in yet, but when you say it and repeat it and think about it, it’s not a nice feeling.
“We’re all heartbroken by it. It’s gutting for us, the nation, everybody.”
(Ujah) is my brother, I love him and I know he wouldn't do anything intentional
Mitchell-Blake added: “I feel like a lot is still yet to be revealed, and we just have to let everything play out.
“(Ujah) is my brother, I love him and I know he wouldn’t do anything intentional. It’s unfortunate that things happen of this nature, but he’s taken accountability and that is all you can ask for.
“I accept his apology wholeheartedly. I’ve known him for a long time, we were friends before the sport and we’ll continue to be friends. It has to be heart-wrenching for him, and naturally it’s heart-wrenching for us.
“We (he and Ujah) speak quite frequently – not so much about the topic, although I know he’s got a lot going on in his mind already. I just try to support him as much as I can.
“We go forward towards Paris (the 2024 Olympics) and try to use this and get a medal in Paris, whether individually or collectively.”
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