Cram doubts Lewis

FORMER Olympic athlete Steve Cram says he cannot believe that Carl Lewis took a cold remedy which caused him to fail a drugs test in the 1980s by mistake.

Cram believed the legitimacy of Lewis' career was now open to question following revelations he was allowed to compete at the 1988 Games in South Korea despite testing positive for banned stimulants at that year's Olympic trials in Indianapolis.

Lewis went on to win gold medals at Seoul in the long jump and, after first-place Ben Johnson was disqualified for using steroids, the 100 metres.

"He claims these substances came from a cold remedy he took. Now, I have to be careful what I'm saying, but it seems funny to me that it's only athletes in the power events who ever seem to have colds," said Cram. "It never seems to be middle-distance runners who are caught taking flu remedies. And even in my day you knew what you couldn't take when you had a cold, and Carl more than anyone else would have known that. I simply can't buy that 'mistake' line as an excuse."

Cram also made a scathing attack on the US athletics authorities for 'covering up' Lewis' test and that of others. Lewis and 19 other American athletes were named in documents released by Dr Wade Exum, former US Olympic Committee (USOC) director for drug control earlier this month.

"This does the sport no good whatsoever. And for Carl, no matter how great an athlete he was, people will now always doubt his legitimacy. The questions tumble out -- does this test detract from everything he did in his career, was he doing it throughout his career, did it mask other things? I can't answer those. I don't know what else he was doing."

Lewis ready for more

LENNOX LEWIS feels he still has a couple of fights left in him before he retires. The WBC heavyweight champion returns to the ring on 21 June in Los Angeles, where he will fight Canadian Kirk Johnson. And Lewis revealed on BBC Radio Five Live's Sportsweek that he is coming back to satisfy the public's demand.

"I feel people are still crying out for Lennox Lewis and that really motivated me," said Lewis, "I'm still young and I think there's a couple more fights in me. People just want to see me back in the ring. They're saying 'Don't retire!'"

Lewis' fight with Johnson is not being sanctioned by the WBC but the champion is not bothered by the governing body's decision. "My linear championship (is at stake) -- that's the most important championship there is. That's greater than any other title out there." Lewis, who admitted that the reason he had not fought in nearly a year, also welcomed the rumoured appearance of Mike Tyson on the same bill when he fights Johnson.

Ferrari bows out

FERRARI will give their new Formula One car its race debut in Spain this weekend. The F2003-GA will make its first appearance at Catalunya in the Spanish Grand Prix. And that will mark the end of the road for the fabled F2002 model which will go down as one of the all-time great cars.

"We are happy to have overcome the running-in problems which prevented us giving it its debut in Imola," Ferrari technical director Ross Brawn said. "Now we are ready to use it in a race. This week's testing went very well and I am as confident as one can be when running a new car.

"The F2002 was a fantastic car but it has reached the end of its development cycle. The new machine has already shown itself to be quicker and we have some further improvements in mind for the rest of the season."

The old model was given a stylish send-off on Sunday, when Michael Schumacher won the San Marino Grand Prix at Imola. It was Ferrari's first win of the year after dominating 2002 with 14 wins.

The new F2003-GA, named as a tribute to the late Fiat patriarch Gianni Agnelli, was unveiled at the team's Maranello factory in February. But it was held back because of concerns over reliability after Italian test driver Luca Badoer crashed heavily twice in testing. But further testing at Mugello and Fiorano this week has prompted the team to make the decision to retire the F2002.

Virus prompts concern

MALAYSIA's national badminton coach has called for the postponement of next month's World Championships because of the SARS outbreak.

Misbun Sidek voiced concern that the deadly respiratory illness could spread at the event scheduled for 12-18 May in Birmingham. He told the New Straits Times newspaper: "The players are generally worried. Postponing the World Championships could be the best solution to safeguard the interests of all the teams competing in the tournament. All it takes is one case and everyone involved would contract the disease," Misbun claimed.

"Also, our players might not be able to focus on the tournaments and could be affected psychologically."

SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) has killed more than 280 people worldwide and infected more than 4,600. The flu-like virus is believed to have originated in southern China and has spread to more than 20 countries.

Gough wants to return

DARREN Gough said on Sunday he has "no doubt" he will be recalled by England this summer. The fast bowler, who has taken 228 wickets in 56 Tests, has not played for his country since July last year after suffering a knee injury. But he is supremely confident of a return to international action after taking six wickets in Yorkshire's first match in the county championship last week.

"I want to get my England contract back," Gough said. "It's something I've worked really hard at and they (England selectors) have been watching me. If I'm bowling anything like I can I have no doubt I will be invited back into the England fold. I'm full of happiness and looking forward to playing every game. If I thought the England captain and the selectors didn't want me to play again, I wouldn't be doing all this. But they all do and they all think I'm a top quality bowler -- and that's good enough for me."

Gough was warned by doctors his career could be over when the injury ruled him out of the Ashes and World Cup. "They said in Australia I'd never play again, and I had resigned myself to that," he admitted. "But all the hard work has been worth it just to get back playing again."