Athletics: Being caught was for best; CHAMBERS: Sprint cheat may have kept on using drugs.

Byline: By Helen William

SPRINTER Dwain Chambers has admitted he could not definitely state whether he would have stopped taking drugs if he had not been caught.

But the 30-year-old, who now goes into schools to warn children against doping, insisted that for the sake of his health he was glad his life as a drug cheat had been brought to an end.

Chambers, who tested positive for the banned steroid THG in 2003, made a surprise appearance at a legal conference in central London on tackling doping in sport.

Asked "would it have gone on for you if you had not been caught?", Chambers replied "pretty much so - more than likely".

But Chambers, who has now established himself as Britain's No.1 sprinter after coming back from a two-year ban, added: "I'm glad that it happened when it happened because I did not know what it would have done to my health.

"I could not go on as I had to go on each day and lie to athletes - never mind the ones that I thought were doing it too. It killed me."

The cost of his cheating, being found out and admitting it is that he has been subjected to "constant whispers" and being treated "like the devil" he said, even though the system is vulnerable to people trying to cheat and stay ahead of the testers.

Chambers, who lost a High Court battle in July to try and compete at the Beijing Olympics, said: "Although I knew that I could get caught I never realised that the punishment would be this harsh. We need to be educated."

Chambers is currently in contact with UK Sport and hopes that somehow his example can be used to help warn other athletes against drugs.

He feels he could have won a silver medal for Britain if he had been given a second chance and been allowed to go to the Olympic Games Beijing.

He said: "I was hoping that my performance would sway the judges' decision.

"I ran 10 seconds flat - the fastest in Europe to date - and felt that my performance would have got (at least) a bronze medal.

"I deserved a second chance considering that Christine Ohuruogu (the 400m sprinter) got a second chance and she was able to become an Olympic and world champion because of it."

Ohuruogu returned victorious to the track after serving a year's ban for missing three out-ofcompetition tests.

Chambers claims the "thrill of winning" now spurs him on and he hopes to be back in a British vest after hearing positive noises from new UK Athletics head coach Charles van Commenee about welcoming him back.

He said: "It's pleasing to know that we can move forward and people are not just concerned with the question of whether Dwain should be here or not."

CAPTION(S):

BANNED... sprint star Dwain Chambers.