Bolt-Gatlin clash now gains new significance

Usain Bolt’s showdown with Justin Gatlin was always going to be the most highly anticipated clash of the world athletics championships in Beijing, but with track and field rocked by recent doping allegations it now looks like being a battle for the very soul of the sport. While Gatlin is a proven drugs cheat, Bolt has a clean doping record which is as much a part of his huge popularity as his dominance of men’s sprinting.The prospect, therefore, of Gatlin emerging as champion sprinter on August 23 in Beijing could deal another hammer blow to the credibility of the sport.