Nigerian sprinter gets ban for doping

LONDON - Nigerian sprinter Nzubechi Grace Nwokocha, who won gold in the 4x100m relay at the recently concluded Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, has been provisionally suspended for the use of banned substances, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) announced on Saturday.

The 21-year-old ran the anchor leg last month as Nigeria beat England and Jamaica to take gold.

"The AIU has provisionally suspended Nigerian runner, Nzubechi Grace Nwokocha, for the 'Presence/Use of Prohibited Substances (Ostarine and Ligandrol) (Article 2.1 and Article 2.2)'," the body said in a statement.

Ostarine and Ligandrol are both anabolic agents prohibited by the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada).

A provisional suspension means an athlete is temporarily banned from competition before a final decision is taken at a hearing conducted under Wada rules.

Nwokocha qualified for last year's Tokyo Olympics and also entered the 100m and 200m at the World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, this year, reaching the semi-finals in both events.

Nigeria's gold-winning quartet of Tobi Amusan, Rosemary Chukwuma, Favour Ofili and Nwokocha might now be stripped of their gold medals.

On the positive drug test, Athletics Federation of Nigeria president Tonobok Okowa told local daily The Punch: "The letter from the World Anti-Doping Agency just reached the federation today and we are shocked to hear this for the first time.

"We risk being stripped of the 4x100m Commonwealth Games gold we won in Birmingham. But we will carry out our investigation.

"Although an athlete is responsible for anything that has to do with doping, this is not a good development for us."

Nigeria enjoyed a successful campaign in Birmingham, earning 12 gold medals - their best performance yet - to finish seventh overall in the medal tally.

Incidentally, in the build-up to the Commonwealth Games, the AIU had praised the country for its improved effort at combating doping.

At the Tokyo Olympics, Nigeria had 10 of its athletes barred from competing for failing to perform the required number of out-of-competition tests. Sprinter Blessing Okagbare tested positive for human-growth hormone during the women's 100m first-round heats, leading to a 10-year suspension by the AIU in February.

But at July's World Athletics Championship, there were no issues with Nigerian athletes.

The chairman of AIU's board, David Howman, said before the Commonwealth Games: "While Nigeria did a paltry 26 tests in 2021, it has already conducted 157 this term.

"The quantum improvement has been hailed even though it is admitted that even more can still be done to totally get rid of cheats in the sports."

Before Nwokocha, there was only one failed drug test in Birmingham, which saw Ghanaian boxer Shakul Samed incur an immediate suspension for using a masking agent, Furosemide.

However, Indian media reported several athletes had tested positive for banned substances in the lead-up to the event and were stopped from joining the official India team.

REUTERS