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SPORTS> Newsmaker
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Third positive test rocks National Games
By Lei Lei (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-10-27 09:06 JINAN, Shandong province: Wang Jing, who won the women's 100m title on Thursday, faces a lifetime ban after testing positive for illegal substances at the National Games.
Her coach, Chen Hua, could also be banned for life, senior athletics officials announced yesterday.
"According to our anti-doping rules, we have decided to ban Wang and her coach for life. However, Wang has the right to appeal this decision and she can also ask for a check of her 'B' sample," said Shen Chunde, vice director of the Chinese Athletics Administration Center. Wang, from southeastern Fujian province, tested positive for epitestosterone and testosterone after winning the 100m final. Her medal has been stripped and she was barred from the 200m final on Sunday night; before the official announcement of her positive test was made. She finished second in her 200m heat. Jiang Lan, from Jiangsu, who finished second in the women's 100m, was awarded the gold medal. Jiang's teammate Chen Jue and Jiangxi's Tao Yujia, who finished third and fourth, moved up to the silver and bronze medals. Before the opening of the Shandong Games, all track and field athletes were required to pass a written exam about the fight against doping and authorities vowed to impose strict punishment on those who failed doping tests - including life bans. Normally, such offenses lead to a two-year ban. "The life ban is a very severe punishment for athletes. We hoped it would make those who are willing to cheat think again," said Zhang. Wang's samples were sent back to Beijing for tests after the 100m final and the results were reported to the organizing committee on Sunday night. "The administrative center has taken a series of serious anti-doping measures at the National Games but they have not stopped some offenders. Some athletes are still playing with fire," said Zhang Yongliang, director of the competition department at the center. Wang, 21, is considered among China's brightest women's sprint prospects. She finished fourth at the 2006 Junior World Championships in the 200m and was a key component of the 4x100m relay team which claimed gold at the 2006 Doha Asian Games. At last year's Beijing Games, Wang reached the second round of the 100m. The young runner Monday denied taking any drugs deliberately and asked for further investigation into the case, although she accepted the 'A' sample result and given up the right a further test on her 'B' sample . "I have never taken any drugs willingly in my life and I have never accepted any drugs from anybody," Wang told Xinhua. "I regret the result which surely has a negative effect on the National Games but I strongly ask the relative departments to investigate the whole case and tell everybody why my sample tested positive," Wang said. According to an official within the Fujian delegation, Wang had been training with the national team since the Shanghai Grand Prix in September before arriving in Shandong for the Games on Oct 18, when she passed an out-of-competition doping test. "The whole Fujian delegation is sad and astonished by Wang's case and cannot find a rational explanation for why such a top sprinter had to take drugs," the delegation said in a statement. |
