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| Shaheen says he switched to Qatar for cultural not financial reasons [GALLO/GETTY] |
For a record-breaking athlete who has been accused of running after big bucks, has missed two consecutive Olympic Games and a good two years through injury, Qatar's star long-distance runner Saif Shaheen looks a remarkably relaxed man.
With the charismatic former Kenyan missing from action since the 2006 Asian Games, many even questioned his ability to return at all.
But not the man himself, who battled hard and is now ready for a much anticipated comeback in the year of the World Championships in Berlin.
No rest
"I took it as a challenge; because I remember when I started running I never rested at all," Shaheen told Al Jazeera.
"So the first year (after the injury) I thought, 'Maybe now it's high time for me to rest.'
"I didn't think I would never come back. I took it as a positive."
The 3000m steeplechase world record-holder and double world champion, speaking ahead of his comeback race at the Qatar Super Grand Prix in his adopted hometown of Doha, has lost none of his easy-going charisma in the lengthy injury layoff.
He is adamant that the switch to Qatar was a move of ethics – and not for big money as some suggested at the time.
Leaving home
"From my experience Kenya at that time was a society in which you could not express your feelings," said Shaheen, who changed his name from Stephen Cherono at the time of his move.
"You cannot share your opinion with somebody else. A society where you cannot tell people that this is wrong.
"So I made my decision.
"When I came here I came not because of what people say – for money.
"No, I never got any money. But I wanted to tell the people in Kenya that I'm not happy.
"We have been trying to tell these people, but they don't listen. Money was never an issue: zero."
The decision forced Shaheen to miss the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, where he was almost certain to have run away with the gold medal after a stunning run that included winning the 2003 World Championships in Paris.
Bans accepted
But he says he has no regrets about moving to the Gulf to find a new sporting home, and says bans for switching nationality are readily accepted by athletes looking for new surroundings.
"For me the switch has been positive," he said.
"The athletes have no problems with the law.
"I was willing to wait four or five years if they banned me that long. But if the two federations agree, then the athlete can move and the ban is reduced to just one year.
"That is what we did."
Four years later he battled hard to regain fitness from the tendon injury in his right knee, but again his dream of Olympic gold faded away as a late comeback bid only re-ignited the injury.
So for his latest comeback, Shaheen says he has taken his time and is certain that he will be back to his best form.
'Perfect'
"I'm fine now, the doctor told me everything is perfect, so I don't need to worry at all," he said.
"There were many setbacks along the way. It was very hard to miss the Olympics for a second time.
"In fact I didn't watch most of the competitions. I just saw the 3000m steeplechase, and the 100m, because (gold medallist) Usain Bolt has the same manager as me and I wanted him to win.
"The other events I didn't watch because I was so disappointed not to be there. When I started training for this season, there was a point after the Olympics when I wanted to train but was not able to do so.
"I got very tired, but I just kept on pushing, and by October everything was moving smoothly."
Olympic bid
Now the 27-year-old has his sights set on a golden comeback – with the help of his own pre-injury statistics.
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"No, I never got any money. But I wanted to tell the people in Kenya that I'm not happy. We have been trying to tell these people, but they don't listen. Money was never an issue: zero"
Qatari runner Saif Shaheen
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"My dream is to win gold for Qatar in London 2012," he said.
"My mind is very strong, so it does not matter with my past injuries.
"But right now I am targeting what is ahead of me, which is the World Championships in Berlin.
"I am very optimistic that I'm going to win – based on the statistics."
The slim runner says he believes he can still fend off the challenge of his former compatriots, some of whom have eyed him suspiciously after his switch to the white and maroon colours of Qatar.
Age, he says, is on his side.
Nothing new
"The other Kenyans, they are not new for me," he said.
"I still believe I will beat them.
"I have raced them 15 or 20 races and they never came close to me.
"Also what makes me optimistic is that I am ageing, but they are also ageing.
"Their time to run fast is gone. My two-year gap makes no difference, I can return to run the same time."
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