Ukrainian open water swimmer Olga Beresnyeva has been stripped of her seventh place finish at the London 2012 Olympic Games after admitting to taking EPO (Erythropoietin).
In a release, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) explained how the swimmer admitted her guilt after buying a product online containing EPO, a blood-boosting drug particularly advantageous in endurance events.
This followed re-analysis of urine samples in March this year of a test originally conducted in a pre-Games test in Kiev on July 28, 2012, with the latter test at a laboratory in Cologne taking advantage of “improved analytical methods”.
Beresnyeva’s case was considered by an IOC disciplinary commission chaired by Switzerland’s IOC member Denis Oswald.
The athlete, who won a 25 kilometres gold medal at the 2010 European Championships in Budapest, waived her right to attend a hearing, instead admitted to the violation following her “fatal mistake”.
Olga Beresnyeva explained to the IOC exactly how and when she supposedly used the product ©Getty Images
Olga Beresnyeva explained to the IOC exactly how and when she supposedly used the product ©Getty Images
She admitted to ordering a medication called “Eprex”, starting to take it in mid-June of 2012 and continuing to do so on a weekly basis until the beginning of the Games.
Although a blow, the result is also a triumph for the IOC’s retesting programme, with samples being reviewed from as far back as the Athens 2004 Olympics,
Samples were retested a year after the 2008 Beijing Games, with the five athletes caught including Bahrain’s 1500m winner Rashid Ramzi.
This article was republished with permission from the original publisher, Inside the Games.