Maurice Greene says he's clean

Olympian and ex-world record holder Maurice Green responded to allegations that he accepted dope during his track days.  The story in the AP sounds like everyone rushed to Greene's defense.

Track and field's world governing body dismissed doping allegations against former Olympic sprint champion Maurice Greene, throwing its support behind the man who once held the 100-meter world record.

Greene also denied the accusations, which were made by a witness in a U.S. government investigation into sports doping and reported this past weekend in the New York Times.

"None of this is new," International Association of Athletics Federations spokesman Nick Davies told The Associated Press. "There is no reason to take action against Maurice."

Davies said the IAAF would continue to use Greene as one of its goodwill ambassadors to promote the sport in the run-up to the Beijing Olympics.

Then Green admits to meeting with the alleged drug distributor, Angel 'Memo' Heredia (this might be associated through Coach Trevor Graham, or through independent avenues).

Greene told Britain's Daily Telegraph that he had met with Heredia but did not receive or use any drugs.

"This is a bad situation for me," he was quoted as saying in Monday's editions. "My name's coming up in something and it's not true. ... I have met him before and when he was talking to me, I told him I don't believe in this stuff."

Davies said the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency had been looking into the link for years without finding any proof.

"If it was Maurice, it was not enough to even interest USADA, who are very interested," Davies said.

Memo Heredia claims he will name a dozen big names track athletes who used his products -- AASs, insulin, & HGH.  Greene  makes the following statements about 'paying for thing'.  Hold on...'paying for things'.  The deniability defense.  Why would anyone 'pay for things' he didn't know he was buying,especially from someone who was likely not selling 'things' out of a storefront.

Greene was linked to doping by Heredia as part of the case against Graham, who is charged in a federal case in San Francisco with three counts of making false statements. He has pleaded not guilty.

"I have met with a lot of people who wanted me to try this and that," Greene told the Telegraph. "Everyone wanted me to work with them. But me getting anything or doing anything? I have not.

"My stance has always been that there is no place in our sport for drug users. I have always said that you should be banned for life if you come up positive even once. I stand by that."

Greene said he used to pay for items for other members of his training group, but didn't know what he was paying for.

"Our group was very close and things always came up," he said. "I would pay for stuff and not care what it was. I've paid for things for other people."

Greene did not answer this question from the NY Times:

Greene and his agent, Danny Escamilla, did not respond to questions from The New York Times regarding the $10,000 bank transfer and Heredia’s allegations that he advised Greene and supplied drugs to him.

Heredia said Greene came to him in late 2002 to ask for help with doping. Heredia said Greene paid him $40,000 in two payments of $10,000, including the one he documented, and three payments of $4,000 and about $8,000 cash. Heredia said the payments were split up to avoid banking regulations.