Top sprinters are missing

ATHENS, Greece — No Marion. No Torri. No Chryste.

American sprinters Marion Jones, Torri Edwards and Chryste Gaines are just three of the big names that will be missing — many of them due to doping — when the Olympic track competition begins Friday.

The biggest impact will be in the six sprints. In the men's and women's 100, 200 and 400, only one Olympic champion, Maurice Greene in the 100, will defend a title. And with three of their top sprinters missing, American women may have a rough time trying to extend a 20-year streak of 100-meter gold when the track competition begins Friday.

Jones, who is being investigated by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, did not qualify in the 100 or 200 after winning both titles at the 2000 Games. Cathy Freeman, who won the 400 in Sydney, has retired.

Kostas Kenteris was the 200 champion at Sydney. He and training partner Katerina Thanou, who took silver in the 100 in Sydney, withdrew this week amid missed drug tests and a suspicious motorcycle accident. In the 400, champion Michael Johnson has retired.

Several other no-shows are involved in doping cases, leaving fans wondering about the state of the Olympics' showcase sport.

"I think the faster you run, the less they're going to think you're a clean athlete," said U.S. sprinter Lauryn Williams, 20, a member of track's new generation. "I don't think it's fair."

Tim Montgomery, world record holder in the 100, failed to qualify. So did Gaines, who would have been a medal contender in the women's sprints. And Michelle Collins, one of the world's best at the 400, dropped out of the U.S. Olympic trials with an injury.

All three have been charged with steroid use by USADA and face lifetime bans if found guilty. Like Jones, all have denied using performance-enhancing substances.

Edwards was kicked out of the Olympics and suspended for two years for taking pills without checking to make sure they didn't contain banned stimulants. She is the world champion, ranked No. 1 this year in the 100 and would have been a 200 medal contender as well.

And Kelli White, who won the 100 and 200 at last year's world championships but later forfeited her titles when she admitted using several different banned drugs, is suspended for two years.

That leaves 37-year-old Gail Devers as the top-ranked American in the 100, She has won Olympic gold twice before in the 100 but is considered a long shot this time. She is seventh in the world rankings, while countrywomen Lauryn Williams and LaTasha Colander are tied for 19th.