Sri Lanka’s only gold medalist at this month’s Commonwealth Games, boxer Manju Wanniarachchi, has failed a dope test and could be stripped of his medal, a national Olympic Committee official said on Monday.
Sri Lanka National Olympic Committee president Hemasiri Fernando said that a letter from the Commonwealth Games anti-doping committee indicated that Wanniarachchi’s ‘A’ sample contained a large amount of nandrolone.
“We have handed the letter to Wanniarachchi in the presence of national boxing association officials,” Fernando told reporters. “It is now up to them to decide whether Wanniarachchi should request for his ‘B’ sample to be tested. If that sample is also positive, Wanniarachchi will lose his gold medal and faces a ban from boxing,” Fernando added.
“We have been made to understand that Wanniarachchi is an innocent victim of this sad state of affairs. He was injected with this drug six months ago having obtained it from a medical practitioner. If that is the case, we will try to mitigate with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for a lenient punishment.”
Wanniarachchi faces a two-year ban from boxing if the ‘B’ sample returns a positive result with Fernando adding that his organisation had already taken possession of the gold medal and were awaiting the final outcome of his fate.
The Sri Lankan becomes the fifth competitor to fail a drugs test at the Delhi Games, along with three Nigerian track runners and an Indian race walker.
Wanniarachchi had beaten Welshman Sean McGoldrick in the final of the bantamweight category to clinch the gold and give Sri Lanka its first boxing gold in 72 years.
Sri Lanka also won one silver and one bronze medal for boxing and weightlifting, during the October 3-14 Delhi games.
“We have taken his medal into our custody pending the completion of inquiries,” National Olympic Committee chairman Hemasiri Fernando told reporters in the capital.
“He has two weeks to make a written submission.”
A sports ministry official said their probe will extend to the physician who treated Wanniarachchi. Police had already interviewed the physician, a police source said, adding that investigations were under way.
Sri Lanka boxing team manager Dian Gomes told the state-run Daily News that he was in shock.
“We have told the boys that there are no short cuts to win medals. We have always educated the boys on doping regulations,” Gomes said.
Two other Sri Lankan athletes also tested positive for nandrolone in 1998 and 2007, but on both occasions they were cleared after alleged flaws in the inquiries against them.
Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.
