Advertisement

IOC retests find doping violations in 23 athletes from 2012 Games

The IOC is retesting samples to attempt to curb doping before the 2016 Rio Games. (AP)
The IOC is retesting samples to attempt to curb doping before the 2016 Rio Games. (AP)

The International Olympic Committee is pursuing a far-reaching doping investigation of stockpiled samples in the wake of widespread allegations of Russian state-sanctioned doping at the 2014 Games. An earlier sweep revealed doping in the samples of 31 athletes from 2008 and now have turned up doping violations in the samples of 23 athletes from the 2012 London Games.

"These reanalyses show, once again, our determination in the fight against doping," IOC President Thomas Bach said. "We want to keep the dopers away from the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. This is why we are acting swiftly now."

The IOC still must test the "B" samples of the athletes; samples are kept on file for up to 10 years to allow for improvements in testing technology. The committee announced that any athletes found to be in violation would be banned from competing in Rio, and thus focused its investigation on those athletes most likely to be in competition later this summer.

While the IOC has not yet released data on the 2012 samples, the 2008 sweep comprised 454 samples, and the 31 positives came from 17 countries. Of that total, 14 were Russian athletes, including bronze medalist Anna Chicherova and nine other medalists. The Russian delegation naturally underwent special scrutiny, particularly the track and field competitors. Eleven of the 14 Russian athletes flagged competed in track and field; the Russian track program is currently under suspension following an investigation by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

____
Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports and the author of EARNHARDT NATION, on sale now at Amazon or wherever books are sold. Contact him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter or on Facebook.