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Lead Stories: Friday, August 29, 2008

After Year-Long Investigation, Russians Soboleva, Tomashova, Five Others Hit With Doping Suspensions

Posted July 31st, 2008 at 12:00 PM by Bob Ramsak

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Olympics, Drugs In Sports

In a scandal that will likely leave the Russian women’s middle distance Olympic team in tatters, middle distance stars Yelena Soboleva and Tatyana Tomashova, along with five others, have been provisionally suspended for “tampering with the doping control process,” the IAAF announced today.

According to a statement issued by the IAAF, the athletes have been charged “for a fraudulent substitution of urine which is both a prohibited method and also a form of tampering with the doping control process.”

The athletes –middle distance runners Yulia Fomenko, Svetlana Cherkasova, and Olga Yegorova, and throwers Daria Pishchalnikova and Gulfiya Khanafeyeva were also named– were apparently targeted in a year-long investigation carried out by the global governing body.
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Slovenia’s Ceplak Edges Closer to Two-Year Doping Ban

Posted November 20th, 2007 at 2:10 PM by Bob Ramsak

Section: News & Results, Drugs In Sports

Olympic 800m bronze medallist Jolanda Ceplak of Slovenia edged closer to a two-year doping ban today after the nation’s athletics federation rejected any doubts about the validity of the athlete’s positive test for EPO last June.

“All doubts about the tests’ accuracy have been disproved,” said Peter Kukovica, president of the AZS, Slovenia’s athletics federation, announcing the unanimous decision by the federation’s anti-doping commission.

The 31-year-old Ceplak, the world indoor record holder in the 800m, tested positive for the banned blood booster EPO after an out-of-competition test in Monte Carlo on June 18. The B sample test confirmed the A sample finding, resulting in a provisional suspension by the sport’s international governing body, the IAAF, on July 26.

In September, the anti-doping commission was unable to reach a decision in the case, pending an additional investigation. Expert testimony since from two noted biochemists and the Slovenian athletics team doctor has dispelled any possibility of testing irregularities, Kukovica said.
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Dutch runner Choukoud banned for doping violation

Posted July 11th, 2007 at 5:11 AM by Bob Ramsak

Section: News & Results, Drugs In Sports

Dutch distance runner Khalid Choukoud will not be permitted to run in any competitions sanctioned by the Dutch federation (KNAU), the European Athletics Association or the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) due to a positive doping test for nandrolone in early June.

A formal doping hearing will be held separately to determine Choukoud’s punishment, likely a two-year suspension.

Choukoud placed third in the Dutch 10,000m Championships in 2006 with a 29:21.98 performance. He finished 9th at the 2006 European Cross Country Championships under-23 race last December in San Giorgio su Legnano, Italy, and was the top Dutch finisher in that section. Those results would be allowed to stand as they occurred prior to the June test.
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World record holder’s future depends on fast-approaching hearings

Posted June 2nd, 2007 at 12:39 PM by Courtney Albon

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Drugs In Sports

The arbitration hearing for Olympic Gold Medalist and world record holder Justin Gatlin is scheduled for July 30-31 in Atlanta, Georgia.

Based on lab results received in April 2006 at the Kansas Relays, Gatlin tested positive for testosterone or its precursors, Gatlin faces a possible eight year suspension. Such a long suspension could potentially keep him from expanding his career as a sprinter as he will be 32 in 2014-end of the eight year term.
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Gatlin to challenge his eight-year suspension

Posted February 17th, 2007 at 2:00 AM by Richard Quinn

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Drugs In Sports

Olympic champion Justin Gatlin will look to challenge his eight year suspension in an upcoming arbitration hearing.

The USADA suspended Gatlin last year after he tested positive for testosterone and its precursors. Although, testosterone is naturally occurring, Gatlin’s levels were considered well beyond that of an average person and therefore deemed to be from a performance enhancing drug.

Gaitlin has insisted that he never, knowingly used a banned substance and is looking forward to the opportunity to clear his name. The USADA senior managing director and general counsel told Reuters that Gaitlin will be awarded this opportunity, saying:

“When Justin Gatlin accepted a positive test and a doping offence, part of the agreement was that he had the right, if he chose, to challenge only the eight-year suspension”

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