Jamaica’s Michael Frater has gone from Olympian to owning medical marijuana dispensary after health crisis

Jamaican Olympian Michael Frater has opened a medical marijuana dispensary – 4/20 Sports Therapeutic Bliss – in Kingston, Jamaica, to treat career-threatening inquires, the Jamaican Observer reports.

The building of the therapeutic facility was influenced by the athlete’s persistent problems with his knees which forced him to retire five years ago. According to the 38-year-old, doctors could not find a solution to his bad knee after visits to The University Hospital of the West Indies and a hospital in France.

He, therefore, resorted to cannabis treatment which helped him to recover from his knee injury. “I tried it and within a month I was feeling brand new. I started studying about it and I realized that this drug which has been a taboo for most of my life is a miracle drug,” said Frater.

“It’s really a drug that once taken properly with the proper prescription, the medicinal purposes are exponential,” he added.

Frater’s effort has earned applause from Jamaica’s minister of sports, Olivia Grange, who attended the opening of his marijuana dispensary. She used the occasion to urge Jamaican athletes to get involved in business on the island.

“What is important about what you are doing is that you are not just an athlete who at the end of your active career, sit down, fold your arms and wait for something to happen, you have set an excellent example for others to follow,” said Grange.

“I always knew that you were special. There was a group of you during your era of active running that I considered special athletes,” she added, highlighting Usain Bolt’s business ventures.

For more than a decade, Frater represented Jamaica in the field of athletes. The sprinter was a member of the world record-setting 4×100 metres relay team from the 2012 London Olympics.

Marijuana is still a controversial drug even though many claim that it has helped them cope with various diseases and situations. For many years now, such people have been pushing for its legalization. And as more and more states, particularly in America, pass laws allowing the sale of marijuana in some form, entrepreneurs, including celebrities, are flocking into the industry to make some cash.