Cycling attorney: Pan Am Sports has ‘severely compromised’ dope procedure

I use this opportunity, as legal representative for one of the cyclists on the Trinidad and Tobago team, to state that the assertion of and ensuing consequences of an anti-doping rule violation has been legally contested and is currently under judicial consideration before an arbitral body…”

The following press statement was issued by J Tyrone Marcus, who is attorney for an unnamed Trinidad and Tobago cyclist reportedly stripped of his silver medal at the 2019 Pan American Games due to a doping violation:

(Ace cyclist Njisane Phillip got silver respectively at the 2019 Pan Am Games and helped his country to gold in the Men’s Team Sprint event.)

Photo: Trinidad and Tobago cyclists Njisane Phillip (left) and Nicholas Paul celebrate after helping Team TTO cop gold in the Men’s Team Sprint final at the Pan American Games in Lima, Peru on 1 August 2019.
(Copyright AP Photo/Fernando Llano/Wired868)

Within the past twenty-four hours, various media reports have been circulating with respect to the purported disqualification of the Trinidad and Tobago men’s sprint gold-medal winning cycling team that competed at the 2019 Pan Am Games in Lima, Peru. Reports have also suggested that one of Trinidad and Tobago’s cyclists has been stripped of an individual medal won at the same event.


The source of the media reports appears to be a media release issued on December 26, 2019 by Pan Am Sports (formerly known as the ‘Pan American Sports Organization (PASO)).

I use this opportunity, as legal representative for one of the cyclists on the Trinidad and Tobago team, to state that the assertion of and ensuing consequences of an anti-doping rule violation has been legally contested and is currently under judicial consideration before an arbitral body. A key ingredient of this arbitral process is the inherent confidentiality provision that has been crafted to protect against premature disclosure of any information that may form part of the judicial proceedings.

It is unfortunate that Pan Am Sports, a reputed umbrella sporting body, has failed to respect such a fundamental feature of dispute resolution, which has been entrenched in many global rules and regulations to promote fairness, equity and sporting justice.

Photo: Trinidad and Tobago cyclists Keron Bramble, Njisane Phillip and Nicholas Paul pedal to win the gold medal in the men’s team sprint final at the Pan American Games in Lima, Peru on 1 August 2019.
(Copyright AP Photo/Fernando Llano/Wired868)

In light of the conduct of Pan Am Sports, the appropriate intervention will be made to salvage a process that has now been severely compromised.

In view of the foregoing, my future comments will be understandably limited in order to respect and comply with the rules governing the assertion made against the local athlete and/or team.

More from Wired868
Olympic 4x100M Gold Medalists: “We feel swept under the rug!” Shamfa: Gov’t can’t pay requested fees

Nearly a year after receiving their gold medals at a reallocation ceremony in Lausanne, Switzerland, Trinidad and Tobago’s 4x100M relay Read more

Tribute to Deon Lendore: ‘So many extraordinary achievements at such a young age…’

“[…] His light shone so bright. So many extraordinary achievements at such a young age. Sometimes life is terribly unfair.  Read more

T&T’s Commonwealth Games basketball place in jeopardy, as NBFTT defies TTOC

The Trinidad and Tobago men’s 3x3 basketball team has already booked its place at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, Read more

Lewis: T&T ‘projected’ their fears on their star athletes—but they did not listen

“[…] Unlike many of their fellow citizens who disrobed and took off the robe of the red white and black Read more

Ahye and Paul top TTOC awards list; Blackman, Serville, Gittens, Anissa and Prescott also honoured

Cyclist Nicholas Paul and sprinter Michelle-Lee Ahye were yesterday named the Trinidad and Tobago Olympic Committee’s (TTOC) 2021 Senior Sportsman Read more

TTOC’s must-read nameless magazine tells stark truths about Tokyo—and beyond

After the 2020 false start, T&T athletes sweated, cried and bled as they prepared to face the Olympic starters in Read more

About Letters to the Editor

Want to share your thoughts with Wired868? Email us at editor@wired868.com. Please keep your letter between 300 to 600 words and be sure to read it over first for typos and punctuation. We don't publish anonymously unless there is a good reason, such as an obvious threat of harassment or job loss.

Check Also

Olympic 4x100M Gold Medalists: “We feel swept under the rug!” Shamfa: Gov’t can’t pay requested fees

Nearly a year after receiving their gold medals at a reallocation ceremony in Lausanne, Switzerland, …

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.