Olympic and world 100-metre champion Shelly-Ann Fraser has been handed a six-month drug ban by the IAAF last night
Beijing Olympic champ gets 6-month ban
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| Shelly-Ann Fraser |
Fraser won the 100m title in Beijing in 2008 before claiming the world title in Berlin in 2009. She was provisionally suspended back in June and the IAAF have now confirmed she will not be allowed to return to action until January 7. Oxycodone is banned as a narcotic but is not considered performance-enhancing or to be a masking agent. Bruce James, president of her MVP Track and Field Club, said then: "She took pain medication after a dental procedure which is not a performance enhancement drug. We are withdrawing her from all competitions until we are able to have a hearing to determine what sanction will apply.
Lance's teammate banned for life
Kirk O'Bee, a member of Lance Armstrong's US Postal Service cycling team in 2000, received a lifetime ban for a second doping offense last night from a US arbitration panel.
The US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) announced the punishment to the 33-year-old American, whose results since October 3, 2005 ufffd including a 2007 US national criterium crown ufffd were wiped out as a result of the finding. An American Arbitration Association panel upheld USADA's ruling that O'Bee had tested positive for synthetic erythropoietin (EPO) in an out-of-competition test on May 20, 2009.
O'Bee had received a one-year ban from USADA after a sample taken at the US Pro Championships in Philadelphia on June 10, 2001, tested positive for the banned anabolic agent testosterone.
The arbitrators also upheld evidence uncovered by USADA that established O'Bee had actually committed a repeat doping violation as early as October 3, 2005 ufffd almost four years before his second positive test.
Chinese firm pleads guilty
Chinese drug producer GeneScience Pharmaceutical Company pleaded guilty last night to smuggling human Growth Hormone (hGH), which is used in enhancing sporting performances, US officials said.
The company and chief executive Lei Jin forfeited 4.5 million dollars in assets and will also pay three million dollars "to finance a clean competition fund designed to counter the effects of illicit doping in sports," the Justice Department said in a statement.
The company had previously forfeited 2.7 million dollars linked to its smuggling activities.
Jin through GeneScience marketed hGH on the Internet under the brand name Jintropin, and was bought in the United States for distribution.
"GeneScience never obtained approval from the FDA to market Jintropin in the US, where hGH is available only through doctor's prescription for strictly defined uses," officials said.
The drug, said US attorney Peter F Neronha, can pose "a serious health threat, particularly to young people who ignore the risks of such substances in an effort to enhance athletic performance."
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