Cathal Dennehy: Catch him if you can - Katir case tells us something of athletics culture

The Spaniard's rivals have been outspoken about Katir's whereabouts rules vioations. 

Mohamed Katir of Spain in action during his silver medal win in the men's 5000m final at the 2023 World Athletics Championships. Picture: Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images

The athletes always know. They know what makes sense, what feels right, and what simply does not. They know who has the talent to be up front, contending for world titles, and who got there through a devious act of deception.

With Mohamed Katir, the athletes knew. So did the coaches and managers and any clear-eyed fans. Maybe not with 100% certainty – it’s always an educated guess – but stick a gun to their head, ask them to guess if he was clean or dirty, and the vast majority would have gone one way. Because ever since 2021, when Katir made a breakthrough that was almost comical, reducing his 1500m personal best from 3:36 to a Spanish record of 3:28.76, little made sense about his career.