For many Belizeans, Marion Jones represented the very and absolute best that is Belize. And when she carried that flag at the Sydney games, our hearts swelled with something more than pride – it seemed like she made being Belizean into something otherworldly. But tonight, all across Belize heads hang low, as the once mighty Marion has admitted to using performance enhancing steroids.
This afternoon, the Washington Post reported that Jones is expected to plead guilty tomorrow in a New York courtroom. She will tell federal investigators that she lied to them when she said she did not use performance enhancing steroids. According to The Post, she has acknowledged this in a letter sent to close family and friends.
In that letter Jones said she took the steroid known as “the clear” for two years beginning in 1999 and was taking it in 2000 in training for the Sydney games. She said that her former coach Trevor Graham gave her the substance telling her it was flaxseed oil. Jones says she never knew it was a performance enhancing drug. Notably, that is the same defense given by baseball home run king Barry Bonds who has been accused of using the same substance.
It is expected that when she makes the admission, Jones could lose her three gold and two bronze medals she won at the Sydney games. More than that, she also faces jail time. In the letter, Jones said she faces six months in jail and would be sentenced to three months.
According to The Post, in 2003, federal investigators confronted her with a sample of what her trainer used to give her and told her it was the steroid. In her letter, Jones says she panicked and lied. The Clear is manufactured by Balco Laboratories and its founder Victor Conte has repeatedly and publicly accused Jones of using steroids – which she has steadily denied.
And so why it is all coming to a head now? Well, Jones also lied to federal investigators about a $25,000 cheque given to her by the father of her son, track star Tim Montgomery. Earlier this year, Montgomery pleaded guilty to involvement in a multimillion-dollar bank fraud and money-laundering scheme.
Marion’s best known relative in Belize, her uncle Godwin Hulse would not comment, but did not deny the report. Hulse said he will be traveling to New York sometime soon, and will have a better idea then. Marion appears in court tomorrow and we’ll tell you about that in tomorrow night’s newscast.
