In the evening, Wharton quietly came to Sebastian's home.
"People from the International Anti-Doping Organization have come to the United States? They also brought the latest banned drug detection technology. You must have heard about this, right?" Sebastian asked awkwardly.
"This is what I heard about." Wharton stared at Sebastian, and then asked: "My name was in the previous investigation report, shouldn't I be found out?"
Sebastian hesitated for a few seconds, and then said, "Well, I can't rule out this possibility."
"Don't you rule out this possibility? How could this be? You told me at the beginning that Franklin's technology is many years ahead of the International Anti-Doping Organization, so it is absolutely impossible to detect it?" Wharton suddenly became anxious.
"There was an accident, which I didn't expect." Sebastian replied.
"Then what should we do? If I am detected using banned drugs, I will not be able to go to the Olympics, and I will be suspended." Wharton almost jumped up in anxiety.
"Calm down. I came to you just to discuss countermeasures." Sebastian waited for Wharton to calm down a little, then said: "I have always claimed to the outside world that I have never used any banned drugs for athletes, so if If you are found out, I hope you can take responsibility for this matter yourself."
"Should I bear it on my own? Are you kidding me! They will suspend me, and that will ruin my career!" Walton roared at Sebastian.
"Wharton, you are still young. Even if you are suspended for a few years, you will still be at the peak of your career. This is not a big loss for you." Sebastian advised.
"The loss is not big? Haha..." Wharton sneered, and he continued: "I think you want to leave me to protect yourself, right?"
"This is good for both you and me. You will be found out for using illegal drugs anyway, so why bother trying to catch me?" Sebastian said.
"Aren't the things I use all given to me by you?" Wharton snorted coldly: "You can't even think of leaving the relationship."
"You used it voluntarily. Didn't you use stimulants to improve your performance? You couldn't stand the temptation of stimulants. Can you blame me?" Sebastian changed to a serious expression and continued. : "Besides, I'm doing this for your own good. As long as you take all the responsibility, I will find a way to intercede on your behalf. With my connections, you will only face a very light punishment, maybe only one or two." A year's suspension. If you behave well during the suspension, your sentence can be reduced. If I'm involved, there won't even be anyone to intercede for you."
"Did you say the same thing to Justin Alexander back then? You put all the responsibility on the athletes, but you escaped." Walton's tone was full of sarcasm, and he continued: "I'm not that idiot Alexander. I believe you so easily. I guess you are in trouble now, right?"
After Wharton poked his sore point, Sebastian's expression instantly turned ferocious. He said in a threatening tone: "You'd better think clearly about the situation you are facing now. I just need It is said that you used illegal drugs yourself. I was not involved in the whole process and had no knowledge of it, so I can put all the responsibility on you. What can you do to me? After all, you are the one who used doping, and you have no right to do anything. The evidence can prove that I provided those illegal drugs."
"So cooperating with me obediently and taking on all this matter is the best result for you and a result that is beneficial to both of us. You are a smart person. You don't need me to explain too much. You should be able to think clearly about this. The pros and cons.”
…
Walking out of Sebastian's house, Wharton looked lost. He didn't know how to make a decision.
"What should I do? Do I really have to bear everything? Will Sebastian really plead for me? Will my career be ruined?"
"Maybe I should find someone to discuss it." Wharton thought of this, took out his mobile phone and dialed the agent's phone number.
An hour later, Walton met his agent in a small bar. Walton found a small table near the corner and told the agent everything.
"Sebastian actually asked you to take care of everything? How can this be done!" The agent immediately shook his head.
From the perspective of economic professionals, if Walton is suspended, he will definitely not receive advertising endorsements, and his agent will also lose a lot of agent commissions. The longer Walton is suspended, the more agent commissions his agent will lose. . Therefore, the agent must not allow Walton to be suspended for a long time, so he does not want to see Walton fight this matter alone.
"I really don't know what to do." Wharton said with a look of despair.
The agent rolled his eyes and thought about it, and he said: "We can strike first. Sebastian wants to put all the blame on you? Then you can also put all the responsibility on Seba. Sebastian. We can hold a press conference and admit that doping was done and that Sebastian was the mastermind. And you are just young and ignorant and were deceived by Sebastian."
"But I don't have any evidence in my hand." Wharton said helplessly.
"Your words are the most favorable evidence." The agent looked solemn and continued: "This is a life-and-death war. If either you or Sebastian takes full responsibility, the other will It's possible to get away with it. So do you want to take all the blame for Sebastian and get suspended yourself, or the other way around?"
…
USATF CEO Williams can be regarded as a very successful manager. After he became CEO of USATF, he signed several large sponsors for USATF, bringing hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue to USATF every year. Moreover, he also negotiated TV broadcast agreements with many TV broadcasters, allowing the Athletics Association's influence to expand rapidly.
However, now Williams has encountered the biggest crisis since he took over as CEO of USATF.
The doping scandal is a heavy blow to the entire American sports world, and for track and field, it is even more fatal. Track and field has always been a sport where doping is most prevalent. Whenever mass doping breaks out in history, track and field is bound to be the hardest hit area involving the most athletes.
The same is true this time. USATF suffered heavy losses in this doping scandal.
Williams' office door is closed, and there are only two people in the room, CEO Williams, and USA Track and Field's second-in-command, COO Frey.
Frey noticed that Williams' face was solemn, and he had already guessed what was going on, but he still asked: "Mr. Williams, has the International Anti-Doping Organization reached a conclusion?"
"Yes, the conclusion has come out, but it has not been announced yet. This matter involves too many areas. Once the results are officially announced, it will cause a global sensation. The Olympic Games are approaching, and the International Olympic Committee does not want to do anything here. When such a serious scandal occurs, we instruct the Anti-Doping Committee to deal with it in a low-key manner," Williams replied.
"Keep a low profile, that's good, that's good." Frey let out a sigh of relief.
Williams still had no optimism at all. He went on to say: "Although a low-key approach is good for us and can reduce the negative impact, it does not mean that the athletes and coaches involved will not be punished. Suspension is a certainty. We have to give, but what’s more important is the upcoming Olympics.”
After Williams finished speaking, he took a document from the table, handed it to Frey, and then said: "Look, this is the list of athletes who have been found to be suspected of using banned drugs. This list has not been announced yet. I got it through personal connections. The athletes above will definitely not be able to participate in the Olympics."
Frey took the list and read it hastily, his expression became very solemn, and then he carefully counted the names one by one. After a while, Frey finished counting the names, and his expression was as if he was mourning for his heir.
"Can't the people on these lists go? Can't we make it work and let the International Olympic Committee be accommodating? The International Olympic Committee takes so much money from the United States every year. It's time for them to repay us, just like As usual." Frey asked.
"I'm afraid it won't work. This time it's no better than before. It involves too much and the evidence is very sufficient. If the International Olympic Committee gives us the green light, other countries will definitely object, and it will also affect the credibility of the International Olympic Committee. . Nowadays, various countries are becoming less and less enthusiastic about bidding to host the Olympic Games. If the International Olympic Committee loses its credibility, I am afraid that no one will even host the Olympic Games in the future." Williams said.
"I remember that many of them are athletes who falsified medical records and used drugs rationally. Can we be exempted? We can announce it to the public and say that they did not falsify medical records." Frey then asked.
Williams shook his head: "It would be okay if it only involved us, but the FBI and the National Association of Physicians have already intervened in this matter, and the media has been focusing on this matter. Those doctors who wrote false prescriptions will confess sooner or later. At that time, we will become the target of public criticism and may even face lawsuits."
"But there are too many athletes involved in this list. I just counted. There are actually 73 people in our national team on this list. All the athletes of our national track and field team, including substitutes, are also on the list." There are only 154 people! If these 73 people cannot participate in the Olympics, we will be missing half of the players." Frey said.
"So it can only be postponed according to the results of the trials." Williams continued: "According to the regulations, the top three in the trials will qualify for the Olympic Games. If someone cannot participate, the fourth place will be made up, and the fourth place will also be If they can’t compete, the fifth-place finisher will be allowed to take part, and so on. We have so many track and field athletes in the United States, and we will definitely be able to gather them together.”
"I'm not very optimistic. For example, in the women's 100 meters event, two of the top three in our trials are on this list, and the fourth, sixth and seventh place are also on this list. There may be others. The project will be in a similar situation." Frey sighed.
"We have no other way now. In addition to athletes, coaches are also a very serious problem. You have also seen the list of coaches involved. It is more serious than athletes. This time all coaches recruited by the national team were wiped out. , all on the list!" Williams said with a worried look.
Frey looked at the list and mocked himself: "What an irony. The national team of the world's number one track and field powerhouse, the largest delegation in the Olympic track and field event, has no coach! Now, the whole world wants to see us. It’s a joke.”
"So we must not let the whole world see our joke. In addition to athletes, we must recruit coaches immediately." Williams said decisively.
"This may be more difficult than selecting athletes." Frey pointed to the list on his hand and continued: "All the people who participated in the interview for the national team head coach at that time were on this list!"
"So those coaches are dirtier than the athletes! Have there not been many scandals about sports coaches in the past few years? Using illegal drugs, collecting bribes, and even sexually assaulting athletes..." Williams snorted: "But we don't have anything else. The solution, we must find a coach, a coach who is as clean as possible!"
…
Sebastian never expected that Wharton would take the initiative to admit doping and put the responsibility on himself.
Wharton's preemptive move was indeed very good, catching Sebastian off guard, and the media also swarmed in immediately. Facing the media, Sebastian refused to admit it.
"This is slander and rumors! I have never given Wharton any illegal drugs!"
"Wharton is lying, he is maliciously slandering me!"
"Why did he lie? That's because he wanted to shirk responsibility! He wanted to put all the blame on me, and then he could get away with it!"
"If it is true as Wharton said, then please ask him to provide enough evidence to prove that the illegal drugs were provided by me."
"Wharton can't produce any evidence at all, so he is talking nonsense! I will hire a lawyer and hold him legally accountable!"
Sebastian's acting skills are really good. His sworn expression and righteous speech made many reporters at the scene feel that Sebastian was really wronged.
However, at this moment, two middle-aged men in suits squeezed out of the crowd.
"Give way, everyone, please give way." The middle-aged man in a suit broke out from the circle of reporters and came to Sebastian.
"Are you Mr. Sebastian? I am Agent Smith of the FBI." One of them said as he took out his ID.
"I'm Sebastian, what do you want from me?" Sebastian suddenly had an ominous premonition.
Agent Smith put on a poker face and said: "When we investigated the Franklin Laboratory, we found a supply receipt, which shows that in the past five years, they have provided you with 73 types of products 341 times in total. Steroid derivative reagents, and these reagents are likely to be used as doping agents for athletes. So we would like to ask you to go back and assist in the investigation."
"Oh... oh... oh..."
The surrounding reporters immediately made a sound of exclamation, and then they all looked at Sebastian.
Sebastian has just been denying that he is related to the doping scandal. Many reporters present even believed Sebastian's performance and believed that Sebastian was really innocent and was framed by Wharton. of.
However, now that the FBI has appeared, and the Franklin Laboratory's supply list has been revealed to include Sebastian's name, as well as the detailed frequency and type of prohibited drugs provided by Franklin Laboratory, this is by no means considered a "real deal."
The next second, Sebastian felt angry and angry, and then his legs weakened and fell to the ground. He knew that no matter how much he tried to defend himself, it would be meaningless.