THE SEOUL GAMES : Talk Isn’t Cheap, but Johnson Refuses Interview With Magazine

Ben Johnson, the Canadian sprinter who lost an Olympic gold medal when he failed to pass a drug test, refused to speak with reporters from the West German magazine Stern that purchased exclusive rights to his story for a reported $1 million through U.S. agent Larry Heidebrecht.

Heidebrecht was turned away at the door of Johnson’s home in Toronto with a van of reporters and photographers from Stern.

Lawyer Tim Danson was retained by Johnson’s father, who lives in Jamaica, and said the Stern deal was off. “There will be no independent story given to the German press,” Danson told reporters outside the house. “When I’m finished . . . no one will be talking to the press.”

The body that licenses doctors in the Canadian province of Ontario began an investigation into allegations that Johnson’s personal physician provided steroids to the disqualified Olympic sprinter.

Dr. Michael Dixon, registrar of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, said Dr. George Mario Astaphan, Johnson’s physician, met with representatives of the College. Dixon said the investigation is being launched because “there are still a number of questions unanswered about the medical care and treatment of athletes on the Canadian Olympic Team.”

Dixon said a disciplinary hearing, with penalties ranging from “reprimand, fine, suspension to revocation of license,” could be held depending on the investigation’s findings.

Angella Issajenko, a teammate of Johnson’s with Toronto’s Mazda Optimist track club, told reporters in South Korea that she was afraid of testing positive in a drug test because “I think someone is tampering with us (Canadians).”

Issajenko, a finalist in the 100 meters at the 1987 World Championships, said she has not felt physically right since arriving at the Games and said, without elaborating, the person involved is “someone very close to us.”

She noted the large amounts of money in endorsements would provide the motive for such sabotage.