London 2012: Shot putter stripped of gold for doping
Belarus' Nadzeya Ostapchuk was stripped of the women's shot put gold medal at the London Games after she failed a drug test, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced on Monday.
Belarus' Nadzeya Ostapchuk was stripped of the women's shot put gold medal at the London Games after she failed a drug test, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced on Monday.
The IOC said in the statement that Ostapchuk was tested positive on both urine samples, indicating the presence of metenolone, which is classified as anabolic agent under the 2012 Prohibited List, Xinhua reports.
Metenolone is used to build muscle mass and help reduce fatigue, among other potentially performance-enhancing effects.
Valerie Adams of New Zealand, who finished second to Ostapchuk, was promoted to gold, while Yevgeniya Kolodko of Russia and Gong Lijiao of China took silver and bronze respectively.
Ostapchuk, 31, won the shot put by 21.36 metres, 66 centimetres better than Adams' best mark.
The results raised speculation of doping as Britain's men's shot put competitor Brett Morse hinted on Twitter that Ostapchuk was using illegal drugs. The tweet was deleted soon after.
In the past few years, Adams was dominating in the discipline, beating Ostapchuk several times.
Ostapchuk won the World Championship in 2005, but finished runner-up behind Adams in both 2009 and 2011 and took bronze at the Beijing Olympics in 2008.