Official Says Resignations Could Be Damaging to TAC

The executive director of The Athletics Congress admitted Wednesday that the resignation last week of four athletes involved in TAC’s drug-testing program could hurt the credibility of the sport’s war on drugs.

Ollan Cassell, in a conference call with reporters, referred to the resignations last Wednesday of Edwin Moses, Harvey Glance and Linda Sheskey from TAC’s drug testing Custodial Board. Doriane Lambelet resigned as the counsel to the board. Asked if the resignation of Moses--a vocal opponent of drug use and one of the architects of TAC’s drug-testing protocol--would be damaging to TAC’s image, Cassell said: “I would think that it would. I can’t deny that.”

TAC had not responded publicly to the resignations, which Moses and Lambelet said were the culmination of too much work and too little support from TAC. Cassell said he had not talked with any of the four athletes, but called them “pioneers” in the drug-testing program.

Cassell also said that TAC has spent nearly $100,000 in 1990 for its out-of-season drug-testing program and could expect to spend as much as $400,000 on it by the end of the year. He said TAC’s financial commitment to the drug-testing program was extensive, but hoped for help from the U.S. Olympic Committee.

The USOC said Wednesday that it expected to take over some of TAC’s testing responsibilities by August or September.

Cassell said TAC was looking for replacements to fill the vacancies on the Custodial Board.