Gay, winner of three gold medals at the 2007 International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) World Championships in Osaka including in the 100 and 200 metres, tested positive for banned anabolic steroids in May.

The American has admitted doping but claimed that he was misled by a member of his entourage.

The 26-year-old Smyth, winner of the T13 100m and 200m double at Beijing 2008 and London 2012, denied his decision to leave the group coached by Lance Brauman in the United States had anything to do with Gay's positive drugs test.

Tyson Gay's positive drugs test had nothing to with the decision by Jason Smyth to leave his training group and move to London, it has been claimed ©Getty Images

"I felt that I needed to be somewhere all year round," Smyth, who has Stargardt's condition which limits his vision, told BBC Sport.

"I learned an awful lot while I was there but I just felt that over the last year or so, Florida just didn't quite work for me."

Smyth has now linked up with Britain's Clarence Callender at London's Lee Valley Athletics Centre. 

Callender, who is now 52, is a former sprinter himself who represented Britain at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul and was part of the squad that won silver medals in the 4x100m relay.

He was also won a gold medal in the 4x100m relay at the 1990 Commonwealth Games in Auckland. 

Smyth's decision to leave Florida comes despite his success in July at the International Paralympic Committee World Athletics Championships in Lyon, where he again won the T13 100m and 200m.

Jason Smyth won the T13 100m and 200m at the IPC World Athletics Championships in Lyon ©Getty Images

"My needs are slightly more than most athletes because of my visual impairment," Smyth told BBC Sport.

"My summer schedule looked very different to the other athletes [in Florida] with my Paralympic events and the Irish events that I did and crossing paths [with the group] was very difficult.

"This year, I especially felt that living in the States for so long and trying to come back home in the summer didn't work.

"I felt I needed to be somewhere where I can be comfortable where I am and where I know my surroundings."

Smyth's main aim for 2014 is to qualify to represent Northern Ireland at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, for which he will need to run the qualifying time of 10.30sec.

His personal best, set in 2011, is 10.22.

"There are also the European Championships in Zurich as well as hopefully going and winning European Paralympic medals," said Smyth.

"It's going to be a busy summer."

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