Justin Gatlin Claims He Was Asked to Leave Beijing World Challenge 2015

United States sprinter Justin Gatlin said Tuesday he was "kicked out" of the Beijing World Challenge by the competition's organizers.   

"They didn't have any respect for me so they said 'you better leave,'" he said, per BBC Sport. "I was happy to stay. I was cramping a lot after the fastest my body has ever run."

On Friday, Gatlin ran a 9.74 in the Doha Diamond League, the fastest recorded time in the 100-meter dash this year and the fastest time since 2012. He said he was prepared to run Wednesday after coming through a training session Monday. 

"It's crazy," Gatlin continued. "I have no idea what they were thinking. I think they thought I wasn't man enough and I might pull up in the race, or not finish it and then still ask for money. But I'm not a man like that. I'm not the kind of guy to cheat people of their money or let the fans down...that's not what I do."

There is probably a second side to this story, though the event's organizers have yet to remark. Gatlin's agent, Renaldo Nehemiah, claimed the event's organizers feared he was injured after Gatlin suggested he had cramping in his hamstring and dehydration after Friday and didn't want an injured runner to participate, per Reuters, despite Gatlin insisting he was fine.

Nehemiah insisted that the incident had nothing to do with the two doping bans Gatlin has served in his past or any possible doping ban to come. 

Gatlin is now set to next appear at the Prefontaine Classic meeting in Eugene, Oregon, on May 30, though track and field fans will likely be waiting to hear more on his bewildering dismissal from the Beijing World Challenge.

He remains an intriguing figure for fans despite his doping past, and his blazing 9.74-second run makes him, at least for the moment, the fastest competing man in the world, and it will be interesting to see if he can maintain that distinction.