By Canadian Press

Russian among athletes guilty of doping; Drouin would be bumped to silver

Feb 1, 2019 | 11:46 AM

GENEVA — Derek Drouin’s Olympic bronze medal could be bumped up to silver after high jump champion Ivan Ukhov was among 12 Russian track and field athletes found guilty Friday of taking part in state-backed doping.

Drouin, a 28-year-old from Corunna, Ont., was among three people who tied for bronze in London, sharing the podium with Mutaz Essa Barshim of Qatar and Robert Grabarz of Great Britain.

“We have reached out to the Canadian Olympic Committee to make them aware as the IOC will work through them if any adjustments need to be made to results/medals,” said Matthew Gentes, the chief operating officer of Athletics Canada. “We’re aware, we’re monitoring, and will be keeping a close eye on any developments.”

Changing podium results after positive tests can be a lengthy process because of appeals.

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“It’s great to see cheats getting caught no matter the timeline, but unfortunately the affected athletes’ have been robbed of their moment, that you can never get back,” Gentes said.

Drouin went on to win gold at the 2015 world championships and 2016 Rio Olympics.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport said Ukhov has been disqualified from the 2012 London Games, while hammer thrower Tatyana Lysenko and high jumper Svetlana Shkolina also have been disqualified after winning gold at the 2013 world championships.

“The procedures stem from the investigation conducted by Professor Richard McLaren, mandated by the World Anti-Doping Agency, in relation to allegations of systemic doping practices in Russian sport,” the court said in a statement.

CAS ruled the athletes “participated in and/or benefited from anabolic steroid doping” in the period before the London Olympics and through the 2013 worlds in Moscow.

Ukhov and Shkolina were given four-year bans on Friday. An eight-year ban was imposed on Lysenko for her second offence, backdated to run until July 2024.

Two Americans are now in line to become gold medallists years after their events.

With Ukhov disqualified, the International Olympic Committee can upgrade silver medallist Erik Kynard of the United States to become the 2012 champion.

With Shkolina’s disqualification from the 2013 worlds, another American, Brigetta Barrett, is in line to get the gold medal from the IAAF. It would be Barrett’s first world title.

Two-time Olympic champion Anita Wlodarczyk of Poland could be upgraded to the 2013 world title if Lysenko is stripped of her title.

The Russian athletes, including 2014 world indoor triple jump champion Lyukman Adams, can file appeals to a separate division of CAS, which acted as the initial disciplinary hearing in these cases.

CAS prosecuted the athletes on behalf of the Russian track federation, which has been suspended by the IAAF since 2015. A WADA investigation report involving McLaren detailed extensive doping and coverups in Russian track and field back then.

The rulings vindicate evidence provided by McLaren and Grigory Rodchenkov. The Russian whistleblower has long detailed steroid programs and coverups, including “washout testing” ahead of major championships he said he oversaw as director of the WADA-accredited laboratory in Moscow and then in Sochi at the 2014 Winter Olympics.

Part of their evidence was rejected by previous CAS panels one year ago, when some Russian athletes overturned their disqualifications from the Sochi Olympics on appeal.

“Today’s CAS rulings confirm that the evidence underlying the McLaren Reports is reliable and is capable of establishing Anti-Doping Rule Violations,” said Brett Clothier, head of the IAAF’s Athletics Integrity Unit, which helped prepare the case. “It is very encouraging for us and gives us the possibility to pursue more cases.”

Russian track federation head Dmitry Shlyakhtin said other cases could follow.

“We knew about this list and I don’t think it will be the last one,” Shlyakhtin said in comments published by Russian state news agency R-Sport. “There will be more names and more verdicts, and we’ve still got the retests of Moscow laboratory samples ahead of us.”

— With files from The Associated Press

The Canadian Press