Nigerian sprinter and long jump medalist - Blessing Okagbare, has been banned for 10 years for doping, the Athletics Integrity Unit announced on Friday. Her Offence has been said to be multiple breaches of anti-doping rules.
Blessing is Nigerian 2008 long jump silver medalist, the 33-year-old who is also a sprinter was expelled from the Tokyo Olympics last year before the women’s 100m semi-finals after testing positive for human growth hormone at an out-of-competition test in Slovakia on July 19.
The Disciplinary Tribunal then handed the Nigerian sprinter - Blessing Okagbare, a total of 10 years,” read the statement.
Blessing Okagbare was handed ‘five years for the presence and use of multiple prohibited substances, and five years for her refusal to co-operate with the AIU’s investigation into her case.’
The Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) had in October 2021, pressed charges against Okagbare in relation to separate disciplinary matters. First, for the presence and use of multiple (two) prohibited substances (Human Growth Hormone (HGH) and recombinant erythropoietin (EPO)); for which she had been provisionally suspended on 31 July 2021, the day on which she had been scheduled to participate in the semi-finals of the Tokyo 2020 women’s 100m.
Brett Clothier, Head of the AIU, described the ruling as ‘a strong message against intentional and coordinated attempts to cheat at the very highest level of our sport.’
She has 30 days to appeal the ban at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
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