Walt Murphy's News and Results Service
I realize we have to look at denials with a cautious eye, but here is what
Reuters reported:
Boulami told Morocco's official news agency MAP that he was shocked at
the test result and vowed to prove his innocence.
"How can I be accused of taking a banned substance when I regularly undergo
medical tests, the number of which have multiplied since I first beat the
world record last year?," he said.
"I train in high altitude in Ifrane (Morocco) four to five months a year,
that's the only doping I could be accused of.
"I'll wait for the result of the other (B sample) test and I am willing to
undergo all kinds of tests."
(Brussels) meeting organiser Wilfried Meert told journalists at a news
conference with U.S sprinter Marion Jones on Thursday that he refused to
condemn Boulami until all the circumstances were clear and the Moroccan's 'B'
sample had been tested.
"It's never much fun for a sport -- any sport -- to hear of a positive test,
but it's even sadder when it's a top level athlete, a world record holder,"
he said.
Speaking last Sunday at a news conference in his home city of Safi, on the
Atlantic coast, Boulami said that "drugs never made champions."
"As far as I know, the fact that a Moroccan athlete breaks a record never
raised an eyebrow. This is due to the world's respect for our country and our
sportsmen."
The press briefing was organised on the sidelines of a ceremony during which
Boulami received a congratulation letter from King Mohammed on his latest
world record.
He attributed his rise to athletics stardom after years of lacklustre
performances to a new-found confidence.
"I was afraid of the Kenyans. But this year I was confident of being able to
break the world record 400 metres before the finish line," he said.
