Linford | Preview (BBC One)

Sprinter Linford Christie confronts his past, from Olympic gold to drugs test infamy

Linford Christie looks back on his extraordinary career, from the highs of winning Olympic gold to the lows of failing a drugs test after coming out of retirement for one last race.

In the late 80s and 90s Linford Christie was Britain’s most fêted athlete. The only British man to win successive golds at the Olympic Games, World Championships, European Championships and Commonwealth Games, he was as famous as any celebrity in the UK. His sprinting victories united the country in celebration and prompted endless media coverage of his life.

He won 24 medals in a highly decorated decade of dominance, then seemed to disappear off our screens. That might be explained by what happened in 1999 – when he briefly came out of retirement to settle a bet with the athletes he was coaching and tested positive for nandrolone. Now for the first time, Linford is daring himself to confront the past and consider his legacy.

It's a story told through exclusive interviews with Linford himself, as well as family, childhood friends, fellow athletes (Sally Gunnell, Jonathan Edwards), the sprinters he trained (Darren Campbell, Katherine Merry), as well as the journalists who followed his spectacular career, and even the doping authorities who were there when it ended in drugs test ignominy.

His journey has been far from plain sailing. This is at once a story about respect and reputation in an era of unchecked racism and tabloid power, an allegory about what it takes to be a winner, and a cautionary tale of how an illustrious career can be brought low by a single moment.

Twenty-five years after his career closed with a scandal that shocked the nation, this documentary explores what it was like to be the most famous athlete in Britain.

Linford airs w/c 22nd July on BBC One.