Jamaican bobsledder failed pre-Games test

A member of the Jamaican women's bobsleigh team tested for a banned substance before competing in the Winter Olympics, a federation official says.

A member of the Jamaican women's bobsleigh team that competed at the Winter Olympics tested positive for a banned substance in January, the president of the Jamaica Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation says.

"We got a notification that one our athletes returned an adverse analytical finding and we're very much in a process," Christian Stokes told Reuters on Friday.

"Early days yet but what I will say in all the circumstances we are confident we will end with a positive outcome."

The athlete had been notified of the violation by the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation, Stokes said, and she faced the possibility of a four-year suspension.

The federation did not immediately respond to emailed queries.

The Jamaican team, which finished 19th in the two-woman bobsleigh in Pyeongchang, comprised American-born driver Jazmine Fenlator-Victorian and former track sprinter Carrie Russell.

A source with knowledge of case indicated the "A" sample from the test carried out on January 13 in Switzerland showed traces of the banned steroid clenbuterol.

The "B" sample had yet to be tested, the source said.

The bobsleigh team received a lot of attention because they were the first female athletes from the Caribbean nation to compete at a Winter Olympics.

Their breakthrough appearance came 30 years after a Jamaican men's team competed at the Calgary Olympics, inspiring the movie Cool Runnings.


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Published 3 March 2018 2:42pm
Source: AAP


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