Nigerian sprinter Blessing Okagbare has been suspended for ten years for multiple anti-doping rule violations, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) has announced: Five years for the presence and use of several banned substances and five years for his refusal to cooperate with the IAU investigation. “The one who was silver medalist at the 2008 Olympics, at the 2013 Worlds, and crowned in many African competitions, had been dismissed in the middle of the Tokyo 2021 Olympic Games after being tested positive a few days earlier.
Is this the end of Blessing Okagbare’s career? The 33-year-old Nigerian has been suspended for 10 years for multiple anti-doping rule violations, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) announced on February 18, 2022. organization thus justifies: Five years for the presence and use of several banned substances and five years for his refusal to cooperate with the IAU investigation. »
The sprinter and jumper, silver medalist at the 2008 Olympics, at the 2013 Worlds and crowned in many African competitions, had been temporarily suspended in the middle of the Tokyo 2021 Olympic Games, a few days after a test which proved positive for a hormone of growth. “The Sole Arbitrator in this case found that the Athlete’s use of multiple substances as part of an organized doping regimen […] was conducted in a flagrant manner, which constitutes an aggravating circumstance says a statement from the IAU.
Refusal to cooperate
The text assures that the African star has shown herself to be closed to any collaboration with the investigators: “ The Athlete’s refusal to cooperate deprived the IAU of the opportunity to discover evidence of a possible new violation by [Blessing Okagbare] as well as possible breaches of the rules by others, for which he was given an additional five-year sentence. »
On June 20, 2021, the person concerned had also tested positive, out of competition, at EPO. “The athlete has the right to appeal [cette] decision […] before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) within 30 days “recalls the IAU.
A before and after 2015
Blessing Okagbare has become an icon of African athletics over the past fifteen years. She first made a name for herself by winning silver at Beijing 2008 in the long jump, despite her perfectible technique. An athletic phenomenon, the native of Sapele once again distinguished herself in this discipline at the 2013 Worlds. Her other medals, notably at the African Championships and the Commonwealth Games, she then won in the 100 meters and 200 meters.
After 2015, the one who is married to footballer Igho Otegheri had seen her results regress, only winning two relay medals in 2018. She had made a strong comeback just before the Tokyo Games, during the Nigerian selections for these Olympics…