The greatest Johnson Ben is an athlete who has gone down in history. He was born in 1961 in the Jamaican city of Falmouth. When he was 15 years old, his parents decided to move to Canada. The guy went to study at a school in Scarborough, which he successfully completed and continued his studies at one of the best higher educational institutions in the country - York University.
The early years and first steps in athletics
During the study, a black student met once the famous sprinter Charlie Francis, who, on the recommendation of his friend, visited the school. The meeting of a black guy with fantastic speed data with a mentor of Canadian athletes served as a starting point in Ben Johnson's sports career. Charlie Francis persuaded the young man to become a member of the athletics team and defend the honor of Canada in competitions.
After a short period of time, the talent of the young athlete yielded results. In 1982, at the Commonwealth Games in Australia, twenty-year-old Ben Johnson won 2 silver medals. However, the athlete subsequently expected unsuccessful performances at the 1983 world championship in Finland, where he finished at a distance of 100 meters in only sixth place, showing good results on qualifications before that. The Canadian athlete was able to get ahead of almost all of his main more titled competitors.
Bronze at the Olympics-84
More successful for Ben Johnson was 1984, when the Summer Olympic Games were held in Los Angeles, USA. For the first time defending the honor of Canada at such prestigious competitions, the athlete managed to climb to third place on the podium. An unfortunate false start prevented him from taking a higher position in the race. Karl Lewis won gold in the 100 meter, and Sam Graddy won the silver. It was at these competitions that the great confrontation between the champion Carl Lewis and the Canadian athlete was launched. Ben Johnson also participated in the relay of 4 100 meters, where the Canadian team won bronze.
What exactly is Ben Johnson famous for? The record for 100 meters belongs to him. In 1985, a black athlete was able to get ahead of his main rival on the treadmill, American Carl Lewis, while running a distance of 100 meters in less than 10 seconds, namely 9.95 seconds. The name of the athlete became known throughout the world, and many experts considered him the best sprinter.
Ben Johnson: Record and Recognition
In 1987, Johnson broke the world record by running a hundred meters in an incredible time of 9.83 seconds. Most sports professionals before this were of the opinion that it was so unrealistic to overcome 100 meters.
Johnson Ben is an athlete who, after completing the world championship, was very popular and became the richest athlete in the world. According to his head coach, Johnson's monthly income at that time exceeded $ 400,000. For his services, a dark-skinned athlete in Canada was awarded the Lu Marsh Prize and the Lionel Conacher Prize. In the country of maple leaf, the entire public, without exception, considered Ben Johnson the best athlete. The largest international news agency, the Associated Press, called him the athlete of the year.
Accusations by the main competitor
The entire world community was pleased with the success of Ben Johnson, except for his main competitor at a hundred-meter distance - American Carl Lewis. The irreconcilable rival of a Canadian on a treadmill for several years sought to find the secret of high results. At first, Carl Lewis referred to a false start and differences in living conditions. However, subsequently, the American in his statement hinted at the inability to run a hundred-meter race in less than 10 seconds without consuming prohibited drugs. Carl Lewis began to publicly expose dishonest athletes and was one of the first to accuse Ben Johnson of taking doping.
In 1988, Ben Johnson was slightly injured several times. At one of the world championships, the dark-skinned athlete lost to Carl Lewis, having won only a bronze medal. Many experts attributed this result to the Canadian's desire to avert suspicions from himself.
Doping Code
During the Olympic Games in Seoul, the black athlete did not stop at the results achieved and on September 24 set a new world record again, having run a hundred-meter race in just 9.79 seconds. This Olympics was overshadowed for Ben Johnson by the fact that he was accused of doping 3 days after a successful race. The black track and field athlete was convicted by the medical commission of using doping of stanozolol, which was little known at that time, which contributed to an increase in endurance, strength and muscle. Ben Johnson at that time practically did not make excuses, explaining the use of the prohibited drug by the desire to keep up with competitors.
After that, the athlete was deprived of gold not only the Olympics, but also medals of the highest standard of world championship, which took place a year earlier. In addition to depriving previously won awards, Ben Johnson had several years to serve the disqualification, as a result of which he missed many professional competitions.
How much rope do not curl
It is worth noting that Ben Johnson was convicted of using a prohibited drug after competing at the 1986 Goodwill Games in Moscow. Using advanced techniques, Soviet doctors found traces of doping in the analyzes of the Canadian athlete. However, they did not report this to the higher authorities and the black athlete. This played a trick on Ben Johnson, who believed in his impunity. Subsequently, it was those very specialists from the USSR who were engaged in the installation and debugging of equipment in the laboratories of Seoul during the 1988 Olympic Games. During the trial in 1989, a Canadian athlete announced that he had been taking doping since 1981.
After disqualification
Ben Johnson is a runner who did not finish his career voluntarily. After the period of disqualification in 1991, he wanted to return to athletics. However, he failed to achieve high results in competitions, and his performances were more like a parody of a great sprinter. 2 years after returning to sports, the Canadian athlete was again convicted of using illegal drugs. Ben Johnson was disqualified for life, which meant the end of the career of a talented black athlete.
Coaching career
Ben Johnson is a sprinter, an excellent athlete who, despite everything, did not lose heart. Having completed his career as an athlete, he went along the coaching path, leaving scandals with the use of illegal drugs in the past. Johnson coached not only young athletes, but even football players. The famous Argentine football player Diego Maradona, as well as the son of the Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, was engaged in his leadership. Despite his extensive experience, the former world champion could not prepare the same successful athletes as he was once.
Now the former athlete lives in the Canadian city of Toronto and is an exemplary family man. Ben Johnson is the runner who authored the book. Recently, he completed work on an autobiographical book, the pages of which reveal all the secrets of his sports life.