Mellouli Disgusted at Drug Slur

Oussama Mellouli, the US-based Tunisian who claimed the 1,500m free crown in Beijing to prevent Grant Hackett, of Australia, from becoming the first man to win the same Olympic swim title three times, has described as "disgusting" any suggestion that he is a drug cheat.

"I am a clean athlete," he told the Aussie media. He had made "one genuine mistake", he said. For those who cannot recall: he took a pill given by a schoolmate to help him finish an all-night college project back in December 2006 and then tested positive for amphetamines at the US Open the next day. He was suspended for 18 months but was back in time to race at the Olympic Games in Beijing. Mellouli's story was accepted as genuine by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, though there was no possibility of him being let off without punishment. That included the loss of his world title over 800m freestyle from Melbourne 2007, under the six-month rule governing doping suspensions in swimming. 

"I'm not sure what people believe about me, and I can't control that. I made a genuine mistake and there's no way I'd take a short cut to perform. I am a clean athlete,'' he said. Those who resorted to performance-enhancing drugs were "definitely disgusting", he asserted, adding: "If you're shooting yourself with steroids, or all those kind of drugs, anabolic drugs, it's just straight up disgusting. It's not fair."

He now looks forward to racing Hackett once more. "He is one of the greatest distance swimmers ever, if not the greatest,'' said Mellouli, 24. "Grant has taken the sport to a different level, and the rest of us are still catching up to what he's done. So I definitely want Grant to continue competing."

Mellouli will race medley at the FINA world cup in Sydney on October 25.

Furniss Voted GB Coach of The Year

Bill Furniss, Rebecca Adlington's mentor, was voted coach of the year by his peers. There was no other choice to make: in winning the 400m and 800m freestyle in Beijing, the longer distance in a world record that ended Janet Evans's long reign in the record books, Adlington became the most successful British Olympic swimmer since Henry Taylor in 1908.

Adlington said of Furniss: "He's like a second father to me. I couldn't have done it without him. He knows how to read me. He reminds me every day of what I need to do. He's brilliant."

Lucas Stays Put; Manaudou To Marseilles

Phillipe Lucas, the Frenhch coach who steered Laure Manaudou to become the best middle-distance freestyler in the world before love caused her to drop the baton, is staying put in Canet. He had held talks with Romania over a possible shift away from France but has decided that the excellent set-up in the south-west corner of France is where he belongs. His decision was made in spite of the loss of several key names from the Canet programme, including Esther Baron, former European 200m backstroke champion, Nicolas Rostoucher and  Pierre Roger. Plenty of talent remains, however.  Meantime,  Manaudou will confirm today that she is to train at  Marseilles alongside Baron. It will be the fifth programme that Manaudou has joined in the past two years. 

Kent Keeps Up Family Tradition

Steven Kent, 20, is following in the strokes of his brother Dean. A lifesurfer in Titahi Bay, New Zealand, the younger Kent dominated his national Surf-Lifesaving pool championships in Wellington over the weekend, claiming nine gold medals. The 200m and 400m freestyle events appear to offer Kent his best line to an international podium in the race pool right now. He told the New Zealand Herald: "Beijing was an incredible experience - I came away so inspired and motivated to be in London in four years' time." He will not be giving up the day job: a month before racing at the Olympic Games in Beijing, Kent helped the New Zealand surf team to a silver medal at the World Lifesaving Championships in Germany. "I'm definitely keen to keep going with surf as well though - surf gives me the extra motivation to keep the training going and it's a way to use all of your talent." Kent won seven individual titles over the weekend, plus two relay golds with his Titahi Bay teammates. Coached by Frank Tourelle, Kent will next race internationally at the Sydney and Singapore rounds of the FINA World Cup.

Van Biljon Named RSA Swimmer of the Year

Suzaan van Biljon was named South Africa's "Swimmer of the Year" at the weeken. Biljon won gold in the 200 meters breaststroke at the FINA world short course championships in Manchester, England back in April. Natalie du Toit was named swimming's "Personality of the Year" in a public vote conducted on the internet.