For track stars, it’s not easy being clean

CHICAGO -- A round of applause, please, for sprinter Allyson Felix of Los Angeles and decathlete Bryan Clay of Glendora.

Better still, give these Athens Olympic silver medalists a standing ovation for living their convictions.

In the last and most uplifting moment of the U.S. Olympic media summit, Felix and Clay said they have been undergoing an extraordinary number of voluntary drug tests each week as part of Project Believe, a U.S. Anti-Doping Agency program that has not yet been officially launched or explained.

They submit to urine and blood tests in addition to mandatory in-competition and random, no-advance-notice tests.

It can’t be pleasant.

It isn’t convenient.

“I just felt like whatever I can do to prove I’m clean, no matter what time I have to wake up or where I have to drive, I’m willing,” said Felix, who hopes to compete in the 100, 200 and two relays at the Beijing Olympics.

The approach of the Games motivated them to help restore credibility to a sport that has been ripped apart by the BALCO drug scandal and faces more turmoil next month, when former coach Trevor Graham is scheduled to go on trial for lying to federal investigators in the BALCO inquiry.

Doping’s immense carnage includes bans for Athens 100-meter gold medalist Justin Gatlin, two-time world champion sprinter Kelli White and Tim Montgomery, who lost his 100-meter world record.

Last week, the New York Times reported a witness at Graham’s trial may present evidence linking Sydney 100-meter champion Maurice Greene to doping. Greene never flunked a drug test and denied using banned substances.

USADA representatives did not respond to questions about Project Believe. Darryl Seibel, chief communications officer for the U.S. Olympic Committee, praised the initiative Wednesday.

“It is important to continually explore new programs and approaches in the fight against doping in sport,” he said. “This is an early step that could make a very good program even better.”

Clay, Felix and the other unidentified participants are saying all that’s necessary by submitting their blood and their integrity for constant scrutiny.

“I want people to know I’m clean and I want people to know I’m doing everything in my power to make sure I stay clean,” said Clay, a 2002 graduate of Azusa Pacific.

Clay took the additional step of having his nutritional supplements tested. The laboratory will provide documents attesting to the absence of performance-enhancing substances.

“It’s more of a pain for me and it might end up costing me money,” he said, “but as long as I can say I’m clean and can take that doubt away from people, that’s my No. 1 goal.”

For Felix, who won her Olympic medal and two world titles in the 200 while earning a degree in elementary education at USC, the reasons to stand up extend to the deeply personal.

She grew up idolizing another regal and powerful sprinter from Southern California, a woman who enjoyed stunning success until her use of banned drugs -- and her lies about it -- brought her down.

That woman is known in the federal prison system as inmate 84868-054.

Felix and the world know her as Marion Jones.

“It was personally devastating for me to see and go through,” Felix said of Jones’ fall from grace.

“I feel more responsible myself to be a role model for younger kids.

“That was important for me. It would have been great if my role model was clean and could still be my role model.”

Careful though Felix might be, she could get burned if a relay teammate turns up dirty.

Consider the women who teamed with Jones in Sydney to win gold in the 1,600-meter relay and bronze in the 400-meter relay. They recently were asked by the International Olympic Committee to give back their medals because of Jones’ cheating.

Carmelita Jeter of Gardena and Cal State Dominguez Hills, third in the 100 at last year’s world championships, expects to be part of the Beijing relay pool -- but she’s not taking any chances.

“I’m going to get in the open event too,” she said. “Then I can have something else to fall back on.”

A wise move in a sport that has provided ample reason to regard anyone who achieves a personal best as guilty until proven innocent.

“It gets to the point where you almost don’t want to run well,” Jeter said, “because as soon as you run well, that’s what’s going to be thrown at you, ‘Oh, you’re dirty,’ and it takes away from the enjoyment of what you should be feeling at that point.”

Felix said she doesn’t fear losing a relay medal.

“We’re hoping that’s something of the past generation. We’re not all about that,” said Felix, 22. “When we go on a relay and we look at our teammates, we can be confident in saying that they’re clean.”

She can say that when she looks in the mirror, and that’s a fine start. The more teammates who follow her lead, the smaller the chance track and field will produce another generation of fallen idols.

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Helene Elliott can be reached at helene.elliott@latimes.com. To read previous columns by Elliott, go to latimes.com/elliott.