By Safiu Kehinde
Nigerian athlete, Blessing Okagbare is currently engaging her lawyers following the 10-year ban placed on her by the Athletic Integrity Unit (AIU) over doping breaches.
Reacting to AIU’s disciplinary panel decision, the 33-year-old acknowledged the lengthy suspension via a post on her Instagram page on Friday. She revealed that her legal team has been engaged over the case.
“My attention has been drawn to the statement issued by the AIU regarding its disciplinary panel decision. My lawyers are currently studying it for our next line of action which we will inform you soon,” she wrote.
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Recall that Blackbox Nigeria earlier reported the athlete’s suspension by the disciplinary body. The AIU had accused the Nigerian sprinter of using “multiple prohibited substance” having tested positive for doping during the Tokyo Olympic Games where she had won her first-round heat of the women’s 100 metres before her forced withdrawal from the competition.
Ideally, the duration stipulated for such offence is four years ban. But Okagbare’s “egregious” conduct as described by the AIU, contributed to the increment of the ban. She bagged five years for returning doping test positive for EPO as well as Human Growth Hormone. Her refusal to corporate with an AIU investigation led to an additional five years, extending the ban to ten years.
Commenting of the ban, AIU’s chief Brett Clothier lauded the decision of the body while noting that such action will serve as deterrent to others.
“We welcome the decision of the Disciplinary Tribunal. A ban of 10 years is a strong message against intentional and coordinated attempts to cheat at the very highest level of our sport.
“This is an outcome that was driven by our intelligence-led target testing as well as our commitment to investigate the circumstances behind a positive test,” Clothier said in the statement.
Meanwhile, several Nigerians have flooded social media with their goodwill messages to the former Commonwealth gold medalist as she battles a career-ending ban.
