LINFORD CHRISTIE TO JOIN PIRATES PREMIERE

By Humphrey Carter BRITAIN'S Olympic, World, Commonwealth and European 100 metres gold medalist Linford Christie OBE will be coming to Majorca next month to help Pirates Adventure raise funds for Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital. Christie is the only athlete, to date, to have won the four gold medals and will be the star of this year's Pirates Charity Premiere on May 6 with features a field of top British sportsmen and women including former Olympic swimmer Sharron Davies, the former Olympic athlete Sally Gunnel, ex-footballer John Fashanu, the former world champion boxer Nigel Benn and the legendary Arsenal and England star Ian Wright. They are going to be joined by a host of to British celebrity and tv stars, as well as group of children from Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital and their families. Last year the Pirates Premiere, celebrities and guests raised 75.000 euros for the famous London hospital and this year, they intend to raise even more funds with the aid of the likes of the former BBC Sports Personality of The Year, Linford Christie. But while Christie's career high came in 1993, his early track career was not promising. He failed to make the GB team at the 1984 Summer Olympics, and it was not until he began to work in earnest under the coaching of Ron Roddan that he began to fulfill his potential. In 1986, he was the surprise winner of the 100 m at the European Championships and finished second at the Commonwealth Games. At the 1988 Summer Olympics, Christie won silver behind Carl Lewis, though only after Ben Johnson, who set a new World Record in 9.79 seconds, had been disqualified for a doping offence. In fact, Christie's urine also contained metabolites of a banned substance, however he was not stripped of his silver medal. In 1992, he succeeded Allan Wells as a British Olympic 100m champion, winning the title ahead of Namibian Frankie Fredericks. In 1993, he became the first man in history to hold the Olympic, World, European and Commonwealth titles in the 100 m as he was victorious at the Stuttgart World Championships. He also became the BBC Sports Personality of the Year. After 1994, he was less successful. Christie was disqualified in the 1996 Olympic final after two false starts, and in 1999, he was found guilty of using the banned drug nandrolone. Although the (now defunct) British athletic federation found him to be not guilty, the IAAF overruled and confirmed the suspension. Christie, who had for some time been focusing on coaching, subsequently retired having won a total of 23 medals.