Chambers, who served a two-year ban after testing positive for anabolic steroid THG in 2003, is in the squad after winning last weekend's trials.

"In his case, I don't believe he should be running," said Holmes.

"It doesn't put us in a good light allowing a cheat, who has admitted he's a cheat, to represent us."

UK Athletics said they reluctantly selected Chambers for the championships in Valencia next Olympic gag row leads to review ...
Row over UK Olympians' contract ...
Athletics: Jones loses medals ... month after his dominant 60m victory in the trials.

In a strongly worded statement, UKA said that "taking him to the World Indoors deprives young, upwardly mobile committed athletes of this key development opportunity".

And Holmes, who won 800m and 1500m gold at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, says the fact he is in the squad sets a bad example.

"There are so many other people like myself who are completely dedicated, focused, committed and went through so many things to try and be the best you can be and then there's other people knowingly cheating," she added. "I don't think its right.

"This was an athlete who went to America, knowingly took a drug that was undetectable at the time, got caught, admitted he'd taken drugs, then went on to say that you can't win anything without taking drugs.

"And then goes and competes again, I presume because he wants to win. I don't believe he should be running."

Another double Olympic champion, Lord Coe, said he was "uncomfortable" with Chambers' place in the squad.

"My sport is incredibly fragile at the moment," said Coe.

He added: "With the amount of money being spent on education programmes I do not accept there are any circumstances where athletes like Dwain Chambers can get sucked into something without being complicit."

Roger Black, who won 400m silver for Britain at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, says the selection of Chambers is "terrible" for the sport.

"If UK Athletics hadn't selected him, the legal ramifications would have been huge," Black told BBC Radio 5 Live. "He had a pretty strong case and he is playing within the rules of the sport.

"But it's a terrible thing for the sport. This is going to go on and on because Dwain Chambers is not going to get any slower.

"He is going to be better outdoors than he is indoors and is going to be beating a lot of people for the foreseeable future."

And Black says the move is not good for youngsters coming into athletics.

"The views expressed by UK Athletics are the views of athletes past and present," Black added. "There is a bigger picture here and it's about protecting the future of the sport.

"It upsets me when Dwain comes out with statements that you cannot win an Olympic gold medal without taking drugs. That's factually wrong and it does an enormous amount of damage to the kids who want to come into the sport.

"I understand him wanting to be a shining example of what you can do clean but I don't buy that. I think it is an example to young athletes of 'give it a go, if you get caught - it's OK, you can always come back'.

"He knew what he was doing and he should be big enough to put his hands up and say: 'I need to walk away'."

Malcolm Arnold, the coach of Chambers' 60m rival Craig Pickering, said he was "disgusted" by the situation.

"Make no mistake about it, that performance by Chambers on Saturday at Sheffield was superb, it was outstanding," Arnold told 5 Live.

"You don't produce those performances without training partners, without coaches, and I would like them to come clean about who is actually supporting him when he trains, because I think it's unacceptable."

Chambers' former agent John Regis, an Olympic 200m silver medallist, said the UKA decision was the right one.

"Dwain has served his two-year ban. It's something that the rules stated at the time and he's done that," Regis told BBC Sport 24.

"He came, he won the national championships last weekend in a fine time so I can't see why they shouldn't pick him.

"Dwain made a wrong choice, a very, very bad choice, and paid the ultimate price. He's now said he's trying to come back and prove that it was a mistake. You can't keep punishing him.

"The only way he can make it right is by going out there, performing and obviously speaking out against drugs in sport."

And Chambers also received backing from former world 100m champion Kim Collins.

"He got banned, he served his time and he should be allowed back," he told the BBC.

"If they don't pick him then UK Athletics would be bending their own rules.

"He should be allowed to run and he should be representing Great Britain because he's the man for the job."

(BBC)

<< Back