Michelle De Bruin Appears on Reality Television

KILKENNY, Ireland, October 30. IRELAND'S Michelle De Bruin, whose penchant for doping is better known than her three gold medals and a bronze from the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, has competed on a reality television show. De Bruin took part in Celebrities Go Wild, a show that features well-known names navigating through the Irish city Connemara. The show raised money for charity.

An article by Ronald Quinlan in The Independent suggests that De Bruin, who has been an outcast in her homeland after being found guilty of tampering with her drug tests in 1998, shouldn't have to deal with the blackballing she has faced. Quinlan further indicates that during De Bruin's appearance on the show, she was well-liked by her fellow contestants and the viewers who voted for which celebrities they preferred to see stay on the show.

At the 1996 Olympics, De Bruin, then swimming as Michelle Smith, took home gold medals in the 200 and 400 individual medley events, along with the 400 freestyle. There was instant suspicion over her speedy rise to the top of the sport, hunches that were later found to be true when De Bruin tampered with one of her drug tests and, consequently, received a four-year ban.

The sad part of Quinlan's story is that he suggests De Bruin was unfairly portrayed as a villain. What Quinlan doesn't recognize, however, is that De Bruin is a cheat and, indeed, is a villain, particularly to those who finished behind the drugged-up athlete in Atlanta. Stunning how Quinlan can overlook such a scenario.

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