Integrity guardians tell Cappuccino Kid ’don’t call yourself an Olympian’

The AOC and IOC recognise former modern pentathlete Alex Watson as an Olympian – but a self-appointed band of integrity guardians say he shouldn’t call himself a Games veteran.

The five-ring community’s self-appointed integrity guardian, the World Olympians Association (WOA), says Alex Watson does not deserve to promote himself as an Olympian because of a scandal 37 years ago. Picture: Patrick Woods

An Australian athlete has been sensationally denied public recognition as a three-time Olympian because of a failed drug test almost 40 years ago.

Former modern pentathlete Alex Watson, 67, was ejected from the 1988 Seoul Olympics after recording an excessive level of caffeine, a stimulant no longer on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s banned substance list. Watson argued that his elevated test result was because of drinking 10 to 12 coffees on the day of competition. It earned him the nickname The Cappuccino Kid, newspaper headlines, notoriety and a two-year ban.

Sydney-born Watson returned from suspension to compete at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics and both the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) now formally recognise Watson’s status as a Games veteran who made his debut in Los Angeles in 1984.

The Sunday Telegraph saw an email from the IOC last year saying it “clearly considers you as an Olympian”.

Watson’s problem is the five-ring community’s self-appointed integrity guardian, the World Olympians Association (WOA), says he does not deserve to promote himself as an Olympian because of the scandal 37 years ago.

How Alex Watson made front page news in 1988.

The WOA, headed by a former French rival of Watson’s, has banned the Australian from using the postnominal OLY after his name, an honour Olympians proudly include in their titles and correspondence. “The use of OLY is only offered to Olympians who comply with the IOC Code of Ethics and the WOA Code of Conduct,” the organisation told Watson in a letter.

“Anyone found to be in breach of those codes, including athletes who have been found guilty of anti-doping violations, will be ineligible to use OLY.”

Alex Watson is recognised by the AOC and IOC for his achievements despite a failed drug test in 1988. He said he tested positive to caffeine after drinking 10 to 12 cups of coffee. Main picture: Patrick Woods

But at least two former athletes who tested positive to steroids are using the OLY descriptor, including Mark Richardson, a two-time British Olympian, who missed the 2000 Games after testing positive for steroids in 1999. He later had his ban lifted after it was found he had “inadvertently” ingested it.

US pole vaulter Kory Merrill Tarpenning, who competed at the 1988 and 1992 Olympics, was also suspended for two years in 1997 after testing positive to steroids. In 2022, he was also sentenced to three months’ jail for failing to declare $2m in income.

Watson’s lawyers argued in a letter to the WOA on December 23 “that since his retirement as a competing athlete, Mr Watson has continued to contribute to the Olympic movement and his sport in a very substantial and dedicated manner”. It included serving as the modern pentathlon competition manager at Sydney’s 2000 Olympics and becoming an executive board member of the sport’s international governing body, the Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne (UIPM), from 1997 to 2002.

Watson even ran for the presidency of the UIPM in 2022, on a platform of preserving horseriding in the modern pentathlon, a stance he claims was not universally welcomed.

Alex Watson unsuccessfully campaigned for horse riding to be preserved in his sport of modern pentathlon.

“I also wanted to revolutionise the marketing of the sport,” he said. “It’s wonderful to be in the Olympics, but we needed to stand on our own two feet, be commercially viable, not just sit back and wait for the IOC to give you a cheque every four years. It’s about getting off your arse and working. I don’t think everyone liked what I was saying.”

Watson went into the presidency race with the endorsement of 2020 Olympic champion Joe Choong of Great Britain and nine other world-rated or medal-winning pentathletes. It was during his candidacy for the presidency – where OLY appeared after his name on a PowerPoint presentation – that the WOA stepped in.

The WOA is headed by another former modern pentathlete, Frenchman Joel Bouzou, who competed against Watson at the 1984, 1988 and 1992 Olympics. Bouzou has been president of the WOA since 2011.

AOC chief executive Matt Carroll remains dumbfounded. In a letter to the WOA almost two years ago, Carroll said “to impose a lifetime ban … when the IOC, UIPM and AOC considered Alex to have served his time decades ago and permitted him to compete at the 1992 Games, seems excessive and unreasonable”.

“Alex has our full support,” Carroll said. “We find the position of the WOA confusing because we consider he does meet the criteria (to use the OLY postnominal).”

Alex Watson was not just an Olympian but quite the Australian pin-up in the 1980s and 1990s.

Alex Watson takes aim during the modern pentathlon pistol shooting.

Olympic equestrian Vicki Roycroft, who competed for Australia at three Games and coached in a fourth, backed Watson being eligible for the OLY.

“I was at the Games where they kicked him out unceremoniously,” she said. “He went through hell and, in the end, he had done nothing wrong. So, yes, I fully support him.”

Watson’s lawyers said in their December letter to the WOA it was “inequitable and unfortunate” he continued to be penalised “(despite) the IOC’s acceptance of him as an Olympian”. There has been no response from the WOA.

“They’re a law unto themselves,” Watson said. “It’s very difficult to speak to anyone in WOA. They just pull down the shutters and disappear.

“But I’ll continue to fight on for what I think is right.”

The WOA has been contacted for comment.

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Originally published as Integrity guardians tell Cappuccino Kid ’don’t call yourself an Olympian’