Women’s 100m champion fails doping test

Nigeria’s Osayemi Oludamola celebrates after the women’s 100 metres final during the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi October 7, 2010

NEW DELHI, (Reuters) – Commonwealth Games women’s 100  metres gold medallist Osayemi Oludamola has been suspended after  testing positive for a banned stimulant, Games Federation chief  Mike Fennell said yesterday.

The Nigerian’s sample contained the banned stimulant  methylhexaneamine, which was added to the World Anti-Doping  Agency’s (WADA) list of banned substances for the first time  this year.
The 24-year-old’s suspension was extended after a hearing yesterday  and she will keep her gold medal until after her B sample  is tested.

“(The) B Sample result is expected within 48 hours from the  time of the request so further details are not expected until  Wednesday morning,” said a Games Federation statement.

Nigeria's Osayemi Oludamola celebrates after the women's 100 metres final during the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi October 7, 2010

Oludamola took gold after Australian Sally Pearson, who  crossed the line first in Thursday’s race, was disqualified for  a false start three hours after the finish.

Natasha Mayers, who crossed the line third in the blue  riband sprint to take St Vincent and the Grenadines’ first  athletics medal, will be elevated to gold medallist if Oludamola  is stripped of the title.

Mayers herself served a two-year doping ban after testing  positive for testosterone in 2005.

The online edition of Nigeria’s Vanguard newspaper  (www.vanguardngr.com) quoted the president of Athletics  Federation of Nigeria as saying that they would back the athlete  as they believed she took the substance inadvertently.

“She took medication for her toothache and we strongly  suspect that it was that which  led to her failed drug test,”  Solomon Ogba told the paper.

‘SHOCKED AND DISAPPOINTED’

Elias Usman Gora, chef de mission of the Nigeria team, told  Reuters he was “shocked and disappointed”.

“We brought our athletes here to compete and in the right  spirit,” he said. “It is very unfortunate if the second test  also comes out positive. “We had done out of competition testing on most of our  athletes before coming here, except a few who joined us directly  from the United States and Canada. Osayemi happens to be one who  joined us from the United States. “She has been a good athlete and had no problems with doping  ever. I just don’t know what happened.”

A world championship 100 metres finalist in 2007, Oludamola  reached the semi-finals of the sprint at the Beijing Olympics a  year later. “Any positive test, whether it is in a high-profile event or  not, is something that is very much regretted because we all are  striving for clean Games, clean sports and clean competitions,”  said Fennell.

Organisers have conducted over 950 tests since the start of  the Games, Fennell said, with Oludamola’s the first positive in  more than 700 results. “We just want to let everyone know that we are very  vigilant,” Fennell added. “This is something we have to work  with and do a part in monitoring and eliminating doping in  sports.”