On a day India’s women discus throwers were scripting history with their unprecedented medal sweep at the 19th Commonwealth Games at the Nehru Stadium here on Monday, the dope threat reared its head again with Nigeria’s 100 metres sprint winner Oludamola Osay-omi testing positive for the banned stimulant methylhexaneamine (MHA).
The attention at the half-full Nehru Stadium was though firmly on Krishna Poonia, Harwant Kaur and Seema Antil who finished in that order in the discus throw. Poonia’s gold was India’s first such in 52 years — after Milkha Singh’s win in the 440m dash at Cardiff in 1958.
It also meant that the hosts would finish these Games with the highest number of medals from athletics ever and put India in line for their biggest CWG gold haul, the record for most medals won so far broken some time ago.
The positive MHA test — which had roiled India’s runup to the Games with as many as 12 athletes testing positive for the banned stimulant —took some of the sheen off an exciting day’s action in athletics though India’s boxing hopes took a body-blow with only three of them qualifying for the finals.
The news of Osayomi testing positive emerged in the morning. Said CWG Federation chairman Mike Fennel at his daily briefing, “Unfortunately I have to report to you we have had a positive result. This result was in relation to the winner of the women’s 100m final, Ms Osayomi from Nigeria. She has been notified in accordance with the anti-doping standard that applies to these Games.” Oludamola inherited the gold after Australia’s Sally Pearson was disqualified for a false-start. If the 24-year-old is stripped of her gold, Natasha Mayers of St Vincent would be promoted to first with England’s Kathryn Endacott taking silver and Bertille Atangana of Cameroon getting the bronze.
A subsequent provisional hearing ruled that the suspension of the athlete will continue until the result of the B Sample is received. That result is expected within 48 hours from the time of the request; ie, Wednesday morning. The Athletics Federation of Nigeria blamed the test result on prescription medication given to Osayomi for a toothache.