Valerie Adams has been awarded the gold medal for shot put at the London Olympic Games.
Nadezhda Ostapchuk has tested positive for metenolone paving the way for New Zealands Valerie Adams to take gold in the womens shot put at London 2012.
Ostapchuks failed test sees the 31 year old stripped of her medal and excluded from the Olympic Games.
Adams was advised of the news earlier today by Chef de Mission Dave Currie and was rendered speechless. "I asked Dave if the news was for real, and then just burst into tears. I was overwhelmed that I'd won gold. I'm honoured and humbled for the support I've received from New Zealand and would like to thank the country."
Adams also added she was pleased the stringent IOC anti-doping systems worked.
The New Zealand Olympic Committee Secretary General Kereyn Smith congratulated Adams on her gold medal and says the honour is well deserved. She added that the vast majority of New Zealand athletes are proud to compete cleanly on the worlds stage.
Currie said the news was wonderful and is very proud of Adams.
Adams threw 20.70m in the shot put final at the Olympic Stadium on 6th August and was awarded silver behind the Belarusian who had taken gold with 21.36m. It was the first time Adams had been beaten by Ostapchuk in nearly two years.
While a total of now twelve athletes at London 2012 have been excluded following anti-doping tests, Ostapchuk is the first athlete at the London Games to have been stripped of a medal.
New Zealand now sits at 15th on the medal table.
Ends:
THE ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE IOC
IOC withdraws gold medal from shot put athlete Nadzeya Ostapchuk
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) today announced that it has disqualified,
withdrawn the medal from, and excluded Belaruss Nadzeya Ostapchuk (athletics,
womens shot put) from the Games of the XXX Olympiad in London.
The athlete was first requested to provide a urine sample for a doping control on 5 August. She competed the next day in the womens shot put event, where she placed first, and was asked to provide a sample straight after her competition. Both samples indicated the presence of metenolone, which is classified as anabolic agent under the 2012 Prohibited List.
Upon the recommendation of the IOC Disciplinary Commission, composed for this case of Thomas Bach (Chairman), Denis Oswald and Frank Fredericks, the IOC Executive Board decided:
I. The Athlete Ms Nadzeya Ostapchuk, Belarus, Athletics:
(i) is disqualified from the womens shot put event, where she had placed first;
(ii) is excluded from the Games of the XXX Olympiad in London in 2012;
(iii) shall have her medal, diploma and medallist pin in the above-mentioned event withdrawn;
(iv) shall have her Olympic Identity and Accreditation Card immediately cancelled and withdrawn.
II. The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) is requested to modify the results of the above-mentioned event accordingly and to consider any further action within its own competence.
III. The NOC of Belarus is ordered to return to the IOC, as soon as possible, the medal, diploma and medallist pin awarded to the Athlete in relation to the above-noted event.
IV. The IOC administration is instructed to reallocate the medals, diplomas and medallist pins to the athletes who finished behind Ms Nadzeya Ostapchuk in the above-mentioned event, the first three being:
- Valerie Adams, New Zealand, first
- Evgeniia Kolodko, Russian Federation, second
- Lijiao Gong, Peoples Republic of China, third
V. The NOC of Belarus and LOCOG shall ensure full implementation of the Executive Board decision.
VI. This decision shall enter into force immediately.
ABOUT IOC ANTI-DOPING SYSTEMS
Under the IOC Anti-Doping Rules applicable to the 2012 London Olympic Games, testing took place under the IOC's auspices from 16 July (date of the opening of the Olympic Village) to 12 August 2012. Within that period, the IOC systematically performed tests before and after events. After each event, the IOC systematically carried out tests on the top five finishers plus two at random. The IOC also performed out-of-competition unannounced tests. Over the course of the London Games, the IOC carried out some 5,000 tests - 3,800 urine and 1,200 blood.
