Thorpe says reputation tarnished by drug claims

SYDNEY: Australia's five-time Olympic gold medallist Ian Thorpe said on Monday that he will never fully restore his swimming reputation in the wake of a drugs controversy.   

A French newspaper in March published details of a urine sample he returned last year that showed abnormal levels of testosterone and leutenising hormone.   

The Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority (ASADA) subsequently found he had no case to answer and international swimming body FINA said earlier this month there was insufficient evidence he took performance-enhancing drugs.   

But despite being cleared, Australia's most successful Olympian said his reputation is tarnished.   

"I was glad when it was over but, you know, it's not really over yet and it never will be," Thorpe said during the final inspection of the Ian Thorpe Aquatic Centre in Sydney.   

"My name is forever tarnished, more so overseas than what it is here, and that's something that I continue to have to deal with."   

Asked if he could ever restore his reputation 100 percent, Thorpe said: "No, you can't. It's not possible".   

Thorpe said he had not ruled out taking legal action in order to identify the person who leaked the confidential information to the French newspaper.   

"Anything's a possibility," Thorpe said. "I've got to think what's right and what's morally right for me."   

It has been a year since Thorpe quit competitive swimming, citing a lack of motivation, and the 25-year-old harbours only a tinge of sadness about not preparing for next year's Beijing Olympics.   

"I'd love to be training for it and I'd love to be racing at it -- but that's it. I don't want everything else that comes with it," Thorpe said.   

"I'm glad within what I'm doing now and I'm excited by that. I'm happy with where my life is at the moment and I wouldn't change it for anything."