At the beginning of last week, US anti-doping agency Usada announced that coach Alberto Salazar, who has trained Mo Farah, among others, will be suspended for four years for drug offenses. Among other things, he should have manipulated doping controls, used banned methods and made sure athletes got hold of the performance-enhancing substance testosterone.
Now Nike, which is behind the Nike Oregon Project team (which Salazar was the manager of) announces that they are closing down the entire team, which is mainly made up of medium and long distance runners.
“The situation, together with the ongoing unfounded claims, is a disruptive moment for many of the athletes and disrupts their opportunities to focus on training and competitions. That's why I made the decision to shut down the Oregon Project, "says Nike President, President and CEO Mark Parker in a message to Runners World.
Parker also clarified in the statement that Usada found no evidence of any organized doping or evidence that any performance enhancing drugs were ever used on the Oregon Project sports. He also states that Nike will help the athletes find new training opportunities.