Now, It’s ‘Get on Your Mark, Get Set, Lie’

With regard to Charlie Francis’ March 1 mention of former and present abusers of steroids, I am absolutely certain that neither Evelyn Ashford nor her former coach, three-time Olympian Pat Connolly would ever use any performance-enhancing drug of any kind.

I have known Evelyn since her last year in high school (1975) as a competitor, teammate and friend. I’ve traveled and trained with her and know her personal convictions on the use of such drugs, and she is vehemently against it.

Her talent has never required artificial stimulation. She got her records the old-fashioned way. She earned them.

As for Pat Connolly, my association with her began in ’75 when she re-entered the women’s track and field program she herself initiated in ’73 at UCLA. She has been my mentor and friend ever since. She is a longtime opponent of drug use, and I and many other honest people are stunned and outraged by Francis’ attempt to implicate Pat and Evelyn in his illegal and reprehensible coaching practices.

KARIN SMITH

Four-time Olympian (javelin)

Salem, Ore.