The International Olympic Committee has disqualified Belarusian shot-putter Nadzeya Ostapchuk for doping, withdrawing the gold medal she won at the London Olympics.
Two urine tests undergone by the athlete on the eve of the women’s shot put event on August 6 and the day after the competition indicated the presence of metenolone, which is classified as anabolic agent under the 2012 Prohibited List, the committee said on its website on Monday.
Ostapchuk’s gold medal will pass over to New Zealand’s Valerie Adams who now holds the silver award. Russia’s Evgeniia Kolodko, who was third, will receive a silver medal, and Lijiao Gong of China will get a bronze medal.
Ostapchuk was one of the three Belarusian champions at the London Games. The remaining two are sport shooter Sergei Martynov and tennis player Victoria Azarenka.
Ostapchuk is the second Belarusian athlete to be disqualified from the London Olympics for doping. Hammer thrower Ivan Tsikhan was not allowed to take part in the competition after doping authorities discovered banned substances in samples taken from the athlete at the 2004 Olympics, where he won the silver medal.
