The International Olympic Committee on Thursday demanded the return of medals won by U.S. sprinters who teamed with disgraced track icon Marion Jones in relays at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
Jones, who collected three gold and two bronze medals, has admitted she was doping at the time. She surrendered her medals last year and is serving a six-month jail sentence for lying to investigators.
“The decision . . . illustrates just how far-reaching the consequences of doping can be,” said Jim Scherr, chief executive officer of the U.S. Olympic Committee. “When an athlete makes the choice to cheat, others end up paying the price.”
Jones’ teammates on the winning 1,600-meter relay were Jearl-Miles Clark, Monique Hennagan, LaTasha Colander-Richardson and Andrea Anderson. Joining her on the 400-meter relay team that finished third were Chryste Gaines, Torri Edwards, Nanceen Perry and Passion Richardson. Those athletes have hired a lawyer in hopes of keeping their medals, a matter likely to be settled by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
The IOC also announced strengthened anti-doping procedures for the Beijing Olympics. Plans are to conduct 4,500 doping tests, as compared to 3,600 at the Athens Games. Typically the top five finishers in each event and two more at random will be tapped for testing.
Specifics include:
• Athletes in the Beijing Games will be subject to doping controls anywhere, anytime without notice.
• Athletes who miss a test on two occasions during the Games or on one occasion during Games plus two in the 18 months prior will be considered to have committed an anti-doping violation.
• Possession of any prohibited substance would constitute a violation.
Of the 4,500 tests planned for Beijing, 700 to 800 are said to apply to urine EPO detection and 900 will be blood tests.
John Meyer: 303-954-1616 or jmeyer@denverpost.com
