LONDON: Seventeen track and field athletes face possible bans after being charged with doping violations uncovered by the sport’s blood-profiling program, an IAAF official said yesterday.
Thomas Capdevielle, the medical and anti-doping results manager of the International Association of Athletics Federations, said a total of 36 cases have been identified so far since the biological passport program went into effect in 2009.
Speaking at the Tackling Doping in Sport conference in London, Capdevielle said 19 athletes have already been suspended by the IAAF and 17 cases “are currently under proceedings.”
“That’s a significant number in quite a short period,” he said in a separate interview with The Associated Press. “There could be more to come.”
In the 19 cases completed so far, the athletes all received bans of two or four years, Capdevielle said. Of the others, the IAAF has charged the 17 athletes with doping and their cases are going through the disciplinary process. He declined to give details but said the athletes are from endurance events.
Capdevielle said sanctions for the 17 could be announced at any time, depending on the length of the hearings and any appeals.
“It’s more complicated than a standard urine positive so it takes longer to complete the process,” he said.
In addition, the IAAF is investigating two cases of steroid use uncovered in the blood profiles, Capdevielle said.
In a separate issue, he said the IAAF is working on setting up a mobile doping lab in Kenya to make it easier to test the country’s famed long-distance runners. Kenya said last year it was investigating accusations of doping among its distance runners and asked the World Anti-Doping Agency and police for help.
Capdevielle said the IAAF monitors about 150 Kenyan athletes in the biological passport program. He said the federation hopes to have a testing facility in place in the El Doret region by the end of the year which could also be used to test athletes from Ethiopia.
The passport system monitors an athlete’s blood markers over time to check for variations that indicate doping, meaning athletes can be found guilty and sanctioned without a positive test. Cycling and swimming also use the system, and tennis announced this week it was adopting the program.
The use of EPO and other blood-boosting drugs enhances an athlete’s endurance by stimulating the production of oxygen-rich red blood cells.
Last year, the IAAF suspended six athletes from biological passport tests ahead of the London Olympics. The highest-profile athlete was Moroccan marathon runner Abderrahim Goumri, a runner-up at the Chicago, London and New York marathons and winner of the 2011 Seoul International Marathon.
The five others were Greek steeplechaser Irini Kokkinariou, Turkish distance runner Meryem Erdogan and Russian long-distance runners Svetlana Klyuka, Nailiya Yulamanova and Yevgenina Zinurova. Earlier last year, Portuguese long-distance runner Helder Ornelas became the first athlete suspended under the passport program.
In a separate case last week not involving the blood profiling, the IAAF said six athletes from Russia and Belarus — including three gold and two silver medalists — were caught for doping in retests of their samples from the 2005 world championships in Helsinki. Shot put champion Nazdeya Ostapchuk of Belarus, who was also stripped of her London Olympic gold medal for doping, was one of the six.
While the focus on the biological passport and blood testing is on endurance events, Capdevielle said the IAAF hopes to expand the program to speed and power events, which are more associated with steroid use.
While all athletes at the 2011 worlds in Daegu, South Korea, were subjected to IAAF blood testing, Capdevielle said he hopes to implement a similar program for this summer’s worlds in Moscow.
17 athletes face sanctions in IAAF doping cases
17 athletes face sanctions in IAAF doping cases
Arsenal get title boost as Man City and Villa both drop points
- Second-placed City remain five points behind Arsenal who can stretch the lead to eight if they beat Liverpool on Thursday
- Third-placed Villa are also five behind after they could only draw 0-0 in a dour contest at Crystal Palace
- Antoine Semenyo gave Bournemouth fans a farewell gift before his expected move to Manchester City, scoring in stoppage time to give his side a 3-2 victory at home against Tottenham
LONDON: Arsenal’s Premier League title prospects were enhanced without them even kicking a ball on Wednesday as their closest challengers Manchester City and Aston Villa both dropped points.
Erling Haaland scored his 150th goal for City as he put them in front against Brighton and Hove Albion from the penalty spot but Kaoru Mitoma equalized for the visitors on the hour with the game finishing 1-1.
It was the third successive draw for stuttering City who were held by Sunderland on New Year’s Day and by Chelsea at the weekend when they also conceded an equalizer.
“The result is the result. I’m not a person who believes what we have done isn’t fair,” City manager Pep Guardiola said.
Second-placed City remain five points behind Arsenal who can stretch the lead to eight if they beat Liverpool on Thursday.
Third-placed Villa are also five behind after they could only draw 0-0 in a dour contest at Crystal Palace, Ollie Watkins going closest for Villa with a late effort against the woodwork.
Chelsea’s new manager Liam Rosenior watched on in the stands at Craven Cottage as his new club went down 2-1 at Fulham after having Marc Cucurella sent off midway through the first half.
Raul Jimenez gave Fulham the lead and although Liam Delap equalized for the visitors, Harry Wilson sealed the points for Fulham. Defeat left Chelsea down in eighth place.
Sesko scores twice
Two days after sacking manager Ruben Amorim, Manchester United could only draw 2-2 at 19th-placed Burnley.
Benjamin Sesko scored twice for United, doubling his tally for the season, but it was not enough to give caretaker manager Darren Fletcher a win as Jaidon Anthony’s equalizer earned Burnley a point. United slipped to seventh.
Brentford moved into fifth spot as Brazilian striker Igor Thiago followed up his hat-trick at the weekend against Everton with two goals in a 3-0 home victory over Sunderland to take his league tally for the season to 16.
“He’s a complete center forward,” said Brentford manager Keith Andrews. “I wouldn’t be swapping him for anybody.”
Newcastle United trailed three times in a thriller at home to Leeds United but emerged with an astonishing 4-3 victory to move into the top six thanks to a last-gasp goal by Harvey Barnes after Bruno Guimaraes had equalized for the hosts from the penalty spot in the 91st minute.
Barnes’s goal arrived in the 102nd minute, the latest winning goal in Premier League history.
Bottom club Wolverhampton Wanderers’ recent upturn continued with a 1-1 draw at Everton.
Everton ended the game with nine men after Michael Keane, who scored their goal, and Jack Grealish were both sent off late on — Keane for an apparent hair pull on Tolu Arokodare.
‘No man deserves it more’
Antoine Semenyo gave Bournemouth fans a farewell gift before his expected move to Manchester City, scoring in stoppage time to give his side a 3-2 victory at home against Tottenham Hotspur, his side’s first win in 12 league games.
“That was the type of stuff you write in movies and no man deserves it more than him,” Marcus Tavernier said of his soon-to-be former teammate.
Semenyo illustrated just why City are prepared to pay £65 million ($87.46 million) for his services with a curling shot past Guglielmo Vicario sparking wild celebrations.
City have won the title six times in the last eight seasons but their hopes of reclaiming it after being dethroned by Liverpool last season are beginning to look forlorn.
They produced a lacklustre attacking display against Brighton but Haaland’s penalty, after a foul by Diego Gomez on Jeremy Doku, looked like earning them a victory that would have put some pressure on leaders Arsenal.
But Brighton struck back as Mitoma guided in an equalizer from the edge of the penalty area.
Haaland should have won it for City late on, but fired a shot straight at Brighton keeper Bart Verbruggen.
To make matters worse for City, Guardiola said Savinho will be out for two months with an injury, adding to an absentee list that also includes defenders Ruben Dias, Josko Gvardiol and John Stones.
