By Saheed Afolabi
The Commonwealth Games Federation has stripped Nigeria of the gold medal it won at the women’s 4×100 meters event at Birmingham 2022.
This came as a rude shock as the quartet of Tobi Amusan, Favour Ofili, Rosemary Chukwuma, and Grace Nwokocha have been stripped of the gold medal they won in the relay race after Nwokocha tested positive for a banned substance.
In an official statement released by the Commonwealth Games Federation, it was announced that Nwokocha had used the Ostarine and Dihydroxy-LGD-4033, a metabolite of Ligandrol that has been banned from usage by athletes.
“The Commonwealth Games Federation Court has delivered its judgment concerning an in-competition sample provided by Ms. Nwokocha, who showcased her exceptional talent in Athletics at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games,” stated the official statement.
“The analysis of the sample revealed an Adverse Analytical Finding (AAF) for Ostarine and Dihydroxy-LGD-4033, a metabolite of Ligandrol. Both substances are classified as non-Specified Substances falling under the Other Anabolic Agents category, as specified in the WADA 2022 Prohibited List.
“As a consequence, all of Ms. Nwokocha’s results in the following events have been unequivocally disqualified, resulting in the forfeiture of any points and prizes: Athletics – Women’s 100m, Athletics – Women’s 200m, Athletics – Women’s 4x100m Relay, including the team’s forfeiture of the gold medal.”
Following the decision by the Commonwealth Games Federation, England who originally took second will come in place to take the gold medal, while Jamaica will step up from third to the silver spot and finish fourth before Australia will now take the bronze medal place.
