Talking on stage here at the Doha GOALS Forum with reigning world record holder in the triple jump Jonathan Edwards and triple Olympic gold medallist Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Christie claimed he hoped one day for his British 100 metre record to be beaten, but felt young athletes had lost the durability of the past.

"I hope that someone will beat my record because then it shows that the sport is progressing," said Christie.

"The problem is the young athletes now they are faster and stronger as us but they're not as durable.

"I think they do the sport because they make money from it.

"I did the sport because I loved it.

"I trained and I remember sometimes I'm crying because I've got lactic, or its cold.

"I slept in the snow between [races], you know in recovery time.

"I did everything I could.

"These guys are younger now and they want to go to the club and hang out with friends but you can't do all those things.

"When you do athletics you have to be a 24-seven athlete, you've got to eat right you've got to do everything.

"They've got more talent than us but they don't want it as much."

Linford Christie won Olympic gold in the 100m at Barcelona 1992 but a drugs ban in 1999 later tainted his otherwise illustrious career ©Getty Images



Christie's track career was tainted by a two-year doping ban given to him by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) after he tested positive for the performance enhancing drug nandrolone following a doping test after a meet in Germany in 1999.

The three-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist was found to have more than 100 times normal levels of the metabolites of nandrolone in his urine.

Under British Olympic Association regulations at the time, Christie was banned for any future involvement in the Olympics, even as a coach. 

Speaking of this period in his life, Christie explained that "for me it's just one of those things, you've got to move on with your life."

He added: "If I was guilty I think it is something that would eat away at me all the time.

"But when you're innocent and you know haven't done anything you've just got to carry on.

"At the time I was coaching and they told me not to tell anyway.

"The IAAF told me not to tell anyone.

"But I told everybody.

"I was coaching people like Frankie Fredericks, you know I had to tell them, and as I always say your friends don't need an explanation and your enemies don't believe you, and that's a motto I carry around with me.

"You've just got to carry on; you've got good people around you and just move.

"It is my honest belief that one day the truth will come out.

"With that I can sleep."

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