Michelle Smith De Bruin - Irish Olympic Hero or Dark Family Secret of Ireland

  

               

                         Mona McSharry's breakthrough Tokyo Olympic achievements correctly have her as the name on the lips of anyone mentioning Irish Swimming and the surreal Gold medals of Paul O'Donovan and Fintan McCarthy have been rightly lauded and held up to give us a such a buzz this week, delighting the masses and giving pride at seeing our boys and girls do so well.   Conspicuous by its absence is the mention of the Olympian who won 3 gold medals and 1 bronze at the Atlanta Games in 1996 - Michelle Smith De Bruin. One time national hero consigned to the whispered equivalent of Voldemort. So many conflictions offered by supporters and detractors. Some make sense, others border on the idiotic. Conspiracy theories aplenty, friends now foes.

I will hold my hands up - I want to believe Michelle.  Watching her in Atlanta gave me such pride in our country and belief that anyone, from any part of Ireland could become a champion, in any discipline with the correct attitude and the correct training.  Sonia O'Sullivan finally had a running mate. What was insinuated by another competitor at the games toward her success was simply seen as sour grapes or misogyny and made us double down on our defence of the new Irish Swimming Queen.

What happened next rocked that belief to the core.  Following a 4 year suspension handed out in 1998 for alleged tampering with a urine sample, there was an endless queue in the media of 'I told you so' types, issuing their previously unpublished works, highlighting Michelle's unnatural rise from decent international swimmer to World Nr 1.   The Queen's sporting career was over and with only the release of a statement protesting her innocence, Michelle was gone. No fight against the bogus claims, no drawn out court cases, no media frenzy to increase pressure on the sporting authorities.  Her statement that she had not taken banned substances nor tampered with a sample was her word on the matter.  You can either believe or not believe.  She would not be dragging this out in an undignified manner any further.   

And that was that.  We put the memories of Atlanta in a box and buried it out in the garden. National shame equated to a hamster funeral. The family secret no one speaks of but everyone knows.  It seemed the kernel of doubt sewn by the insinuation of impropriety in Atlanta had now been confirmed. We buried that disgrace like we always knew it hadn't been real, and the world was now laughing at how naïve we had been. 

Ireland doesn't handle cheating well.  We're fine and actually admire the 'cute hoor' on the football and hurling fields.  We love the sometimes questionable 'physicality' brought to our games with oft told tales of fighting legends around our clubrooms. If there is found to be a way around something, particularly against a superior opponent, we celebrate it, the win all the sweeter for unconventional manner.  Blatant cheating? No, that's not us.

Michelle is an obviously intelligent woman. Speaks Irish, English and Flemish fluently. Ironically the legal tribulations with the CAS gave her an interest in her 2nd career, Law, where she subsequently became a Barrister and also published the well received 'Transnational Litigation: Jurisdiction and Procedure' in 2008.    While I doubt many laypersons are rushing out to purchase that particular tome, the effort and expertise to produce cannot be faulted.  

It begs the questions: Why would an intelligent, respected person decide to use performance enhancing drugs?  Why was such an amateurish method of tampering with a sample be used?

Lets go back to the start. Michelle at a national level was obviously a talented swimmer from her Terenure club in Dublin, winning All-Ireland medals  at age 9 to becoming national and junior champion at just 14.  There was something to work on, this girl could swim. Michelle was hard working and put in the hours required at training. She would not be found wanting for effort to become the best. Surely though, the sporting world is full of these athletes? Super at what they do but just not elite level?

She went to the 1988 Olympics in Seoul (yeah the Ben Johnson one) at 18 which was a great learning experience but finished 17th in the backstroke.  Her next big event was the 1991 World Championships in Perth were she finished 13th in the 400m medley. Progress made but again not spectacular.   Michelle had however, qualified for the big one - the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. This was a marker event and at 22 Smith was in prime swimming age.  Here we go then.

Unfortunately for Michelle she got injured in the run up to the games and didn't qualify from the heats in any of her disciplines. Unspectacular stuff indeed, and this is where the story seemingly starts. Quite simply at international level Michelle was apparently just another big standard swimmer.  No chance for podium places, a training buddy, always in the rear view mirror of the real contenders. Her personal best times were unnoteworthy and best guess for Michelle was that she was beginning to slide towards an earnest retirement, a pat on the back, a quick Go raibh maith agat and please close the door behind you.

In 1993 Michelle changed her trainer and training schedule. Erik De Bruin, whom she met at the Barcelona Games, was now her trainer.  Erik was a decent former Discus thrower for the Netherlands but failed a drugs test in 1993 and was subsequently banned by the IAAF (although curiously cleared by the Dutch Athletics Association and the courts). Erik blamed lack of finances for the reason he couldn't launch an appeal. Unfortunately, the smell of association with Erik was where initially people started to see some smoke. Guilty by association? Perhaps, but just like numerous other athletes currently competing, when your coach is tainted then its easier for people to believe the same of you.  By 1996 Erik and Michelle were married, a woman very much in love with her new husband, coach, mentor and friend. Previous quotes by Erik had came back to haunt him with comments about the ethics of doping.

Back to 1994 and within a year of her new coach taking control, Michelle was improving dramatically.  In Rome at the World Championships she finished 1st in the 400m medley, 11 seconds quicker than her PB in the event. She had Glandular fever in the months leading up to Rome but still her results including 5th in the 200m fly (a contest she had never entered before) raised some eyebrows. How could an average swimmer start improving so much?  Gary O'Toole, a former Irish Olympic swimmer, said her physique had changed dramatically. Now lean and with a strong pair of shoulders, Michelle was now of the build required to launch podium challenges.

1995 brought further success at the European Championships in Vienna where she got gold in the 200m Fly and 200m Medley and solver in the 400m Medley. Her times were falling by 4 and 5 seconds in events 1 year earlier.  She was now a threat to the the famed Olympic hopefuls. That made her dangerous, and the rumours started.

Those rumours were politely whispered in the swimming halls on the first night when she blew away the field in the 400m medley to win her first gold at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. She was now 20 seconds faster than she had been in Barcelona. The Irish officials put it down to simple jealousy when the 2nd and 3rd Gold medals came in and the grumbles from another competitor spewed directly into the media. No longer were they just whispers, it was now a dispute of fact. But importantly, she still hadn't tested positive for doping despite numerous testing.

1997 and at the Europeans in Seville, Michelle finished 1st in the 400m Medley and 200m free accompanied by two silvers in the 400m free and 200m fly. Respectable and not unusual for a competitor of her standing. She had reached the top and was staying there but without the 'clean sweeping' of the opposition at every event. A world class performer and the one to beat.  The suggestions were a constant if slightly quieter companion to her, she continued to deny all and went about her business. All that came to a crash in January 1998 when an 'out of competition' random doping test was conducted at her home in Kilkenny. 

The findings came that the sample had been tampered with, by unbelievably adding enough Whiskey that, if it had been a real sample, would have killed someone.  If true, was this a woman in a panic? Surely no intelligent, experienced world class athlete would make such an amateur mistake whether they were doping or not?  It is this point I find hard to take. If it was tampered, as Michelle alleges by officials, or altered by Michelle herself, either way it is a nonsensical way for experienced people of either side to operate.  At a later date the officials then said traces of Andro (Androstenedione) had been found.  Andro is a weak steroid hormone, commonly used as a dietary supplement and which is converted to either estrone or testosterone. Again a strange product to use if attempting doping.  The IOC banned Andro in 1997 and the debate still goes on if it is actually anabolic in nature. 

But Michelle was banned for tampering, not doping.

It all comes back to the question that I keep asking myself, why such an dog-poor attempt at fixing a sample? Surely whoever did it knew it was a poor effort in concealment of what was a poor enhancement product and was going to get caught out? Surely whoever did it was of sufficient experience and knowledge of what to do if the situation arose whereby a sample needed to be interfered with?  It is precisely this degree of idiocy that I struggle with.  

Lance Armstrong avoided the tests I hear you say, and yes he did with sophisticated ruses, backups and a working team in on it.  No one operating at the elite levels that Lance and Michelle were, would have had such casualness to the testing regime or results.  It just doesn't fit right.

This week, Michelle broke her long silence and issued a statement congratulating the Irish medal winners in Tokyo.  She has always maintained her innocence and confirmed this by signing off with 'Triple Olympic Champion 1996'. She has her loyal supporters who will blindly support her no matter what she says on the subject.  There are a number of detractors who wish to see her apologise for her deeds and the effects on those who failed to win gold in Atlanta. I can understand this, imagine the pain of feeling mugged from your lifetime goal.  

If we have learned anything we know the body can be changed with training. We see it every day from dramatic dieters to body builders and 'Couch to Ironman' competitors. In the GAA we see huge muscle gain year on year, it isn't impossible with the correct training. Michelle says her training changed completely from what she was doing before including her diet, with specialist coaching in 50m pools (of which Ireland didn't have one).

Even if Michelle clears her name, the stigma will always surround her but I like to see the good in people. Michelle is clearly popular and has great loyalty from her family, friends and local community,  She is not a extroverted personality and does not covet that element of fame.  In my mind the doubts are there for whatever position you decide to take.  

Michelle, in 1996, gave us a glorious week of pride that was never fully accepted by the great and the good.  That's a pity.  Airbrushed from history like a 1950's family lament, that's a pity too.

photo courtesy of Alchetron