LAUSANNE, Switzerland, 23 May 2008 — Athletes at the Beijing Olympics will be subject to no-advance notice doping controls at any time and any place, the IOC said yesterday.
The International Olympic Committee issued its anti-doping rules for the Aug. 8-24 games, which will include 4,500 tests, up from 3,600 in Athens four years ago. The drug-testing program, which will start with the opening of the athletes village on July 27, will include about 700-800 urine tests for EPO and 900 blood tests. “The tougher rules serve as a clear demonstration of the IOC’s commitment to ensuring that athletes play fair,” the IOC said. Athletes can be notified and tested more than once on the same day. Any athlete missing two tests during the games, or one during the Olympics and two others in the previous 18 months, will be considered guilty of a doping violation and face possible expulsion from the Games. National Olympic committees must notify the IOC of the whereabouts of athletes during the period of the games so they can be found for testing.
Former Olympic Gold Medalist Pettigrew Admits Doping
In San Francisco, Olympic gold medal sprinter Antonio Pettigrew admitted for the first time yesterday that he took performance-enhancing substances during a successful career in which he passed all doping tests.
The admission came during testimony in the trial of his former coach Trevor Graham, who is accused of lying to federal authorities investigating doping in sports. Graham has pleaded not guilty. Pettigrew testified that Graham encouraged him in 1997 to inject human growth hormone and the oxygen-boosting drug EPO, which are both banned in track.
Soon after, Pettigrew said, he began buying the drugs from Angel “Memo” Heredia, an admitted steroids dealer from Laredo, Texas.
Once he began taking the banned substances, Pettigrew said he was able to run 400 meters in under 43 seconds for the first time.
“I was running incredible times as I was preparing for track meets,” Pettigrew said during 30 minutes of testimony. “I was able to recover faster.”
