Tim Montgomery

Last updated

Tim Montgomery
Personal information
NationalityAmerican
Born (1975-01-28) January 28, 1975 (age 48)
Gaffney, South Carolina, U.S.
Height5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight160 lb (73 kg)
Sport
Sport Track and field
Event 100-meter dash
College team Blinn Buccaneers
Norfolk State Spartans
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)100m : 9.92 (Indianapolis 1997)
200m : 20.52 (Osaka 1999)
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing Flag of the United States.svg United States
Olympic Games
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2000 Sydney 4 × 100 m relay
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 1996 Atlanta 4 × 100 m relay
World Championships
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 1999 Sevilla 4 × 100 m relay
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 1997 Athens 100 m
Disqualified 2001 Edmonton 4 × 100 m relay
Disqualified 2001 Edmonton 100 m
World Indoor Championships
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2001 Lisbon 60 m

Timothy Montgomery (born January 28, 1975) is an American former track sprinter who specialized in the 100-meter dash. In 2005, he was stripped of his records—including a now-void men's 100-meter world record of 9.78 seconds set in 2002—after being found guilty of using performance-enhancing drugs as a central figure in the BALCO scandal. Since retiring from athletics, he has been tried and convicted for his part in a New York–based check fraud scheme and for dealing heroin in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia.

Contents

Montgomery's first major medal was an Olympic silver in the 4 × 100-meter relay at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. He was a 100-meter bronze medalist at the 1997 World Championships, then shared in the relay gold medal with the United States team at the 1999 World Championships. He also took Olympic gold at the 2000 Summer Olympics with the American relay team. He initially won a silver medal in the 100 meters at the 2001 World Championships, but this was nullified due to doping. His official personal best for the 100 meters stands at 9.92 seconds, making him a sub-10 second sprinter.

Career

Born in Gaffney, South Carolina, Montgomery was initially a basketball and football player prior to trying out for track.

Montgomery studied at Blinn College in Brenham, Texas, and transferred to Norfolk State University in 1994. Located in the Hampton Roads area of the Virginia port city of Norfolk, Norfolk State was known for its strong track program. While in school, he competed in several junior track events, and did well in the sprint and relay events.

Montgomery did not qualify for the 100 meters at the 1996 Summer Olympics, but he did compete in Atlanta in the heats of the 4 × 100-meter relay team that eventually finished second behind Canada. He qualified for his first major international tournament in 1997, and won the bronze medal at those World Championships, finishing third behind Maurice Greene. Two years later, Montgomery came in sixth in the individual final, but did win a gold medal with the United States relay team.

Montgomery did not qualify for the individual 100 meters at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, though he again ran as an alternate in the heats of the relay event. In the final, the United States won the gold medal.

Montgomery broke Greene's 100-meter world record by 0.01 seconds in September 2002. With a maximum-allowable tailwind of 2.0 meters per second (4.5 mph), Montgomery posted a time of 9.78 seconds. This record was later nullified because of doping.

Business

In 2014, Montgomery relocated to Gainesville, Florida to start a business focused on general athletic and sports training for youth and adults. The motto for the business is "Never Underestimate My Ability" as encoded into the business website name NUMA Speed. The motto is a reference to both the initial success, extensive life challenges and ultimate redemption reflected in his athletic and business timeline.

Steroid scandal

Montgomery did not qualify for the 2004 Summer Olympics, finishing seventh in the final of the United States Olympic trials. Before the trials, however, he was charged with using illegal performance-enhancing drugs by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA). While he has not returned a positive drug test, according to press reports he testified to the agency that he, along with a number of other prominent athletes, obtained steroids and human growth hormone from BALCO, a laboratory near San Francisco. The USADA sought a four-year suspension on Montgomery, who appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). On December 13, 2005, CAS found Montgomery guilty and imposed a two-year ban. On top of the ban, all of Montgomery's results and awards since March 31, 2001, including his former world record, were also stripped. [1] After the ban was made public, Montgomery announced his retirement. The investigation also implicated his former partner Marion Jones, winner of the women's 100 meters at the 2000 Sydney Games.

On November 24, 2008, Montgomery admitted to taking testosterone and human growth hormone before the Sydney Games 4 × 100-meter relay, in which he helped claim the gold medal. [2] After the admission an International Olympic Committee spokesperson said the committee would look into the matter as part of its open file on the BALCO investigation, but as of 2019 the United States team continues to be officially listed as the winner of the event [3] and no action has been taken against teammates Jon Drummond, Bernard Williams, Brian Lewis, Maurice Greene, and Kenny Brokenburr.

Money laundering charge

In April 2006, Montgomery was indicted and arrested on fraud charges for his alleged involvement in a money laundering scheme. He was accused of depositing three bogus checks totaling $775,000. [4] Montgomery allegedly received $20,000 for his participation. His former coach, Steve Riddick, was also a defendant in the case. [5]

Riddick served a prison term of five years and three months. Marion Jones served a six-month prison term for lying to investigators about the check-fraud scam.

Montgomery pleaded guilty to the charges on April 9, 2007. He was sentenced to 46 months in prison on May 16, 2008. [6]

Heroin arrest

On May 1, 2008, an indictment was unsealed that accused Montgomery of dealing more than 100 grams of heroin in the Hampton Roads area over the previous year, according to the Virginian-Pilot , the daily newspaper in Virginia Beach. Montgomery told the newspaper he knew nothing of the accusations and that his arrest was a "total surprise." [7]

In October 2008, Montgomery was found guilty and sentenced to five years in prison. [8]

Personal life

Montgomery has a daughter and son. [9]

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "Montgomery hit with two-year ban". BBC Sport. December 13, 2005. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  2. ↑ "I won gold on drugs – Montgomery". BBC Sport. November 24, 2008. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  3. ↑ "4 × 100 m relay men". olympic.org. Archived from the original on December 26, 2019. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
  4. ↑ Wallechinsky, David (2012). The Book of Olympic Lists. London: Aurum Press Ltd. pp.  234. ISBN   9781845137731.
  5. ↑ Caruso, David B. (April 28, 2006). "Sprinter arrested in fraud scheme". Seattle Post-Intelligencer . Associated Press . Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  6. ↑ "Ex-Olympian Tim Montgomery Pleads Guilty in Multimillion-Dollar Fraud Scheme". Fox News . Fox News/Associated Press. April 10, 2007. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  7. ↑ "Report: Track star arrested for drug dealing". CNN. May 2, 2008. Archived from the original on May 3, 2008.
  8. ↑ "US athlete jailed on drugs charge". BBC News. October 10, 2008. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  9. ↑ Helene Elliott: Marion Jones Gives Birth to Boy, latimes.com, June 30, 2003
Awards and achievements
Preceded by Men's Track & Field ESPY Award
2003		Succeeded by
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