The Athletics Integrity Unit announced that Anjelina Nadai Lohalith, who competed in the 1,500 meters as a refugee athlete in the Olympics in 2016 and 2021, has been suspended following a positive test result for the prohibited substance Trimetazidine (TMZ).
South Sudanese-born Lohalith, who last participated in the international cross-country championships in Belgrade at the end of March, will be banned from racing for four years.
She is the third refugee apprehended by the sports authorities because of positive testing for illegal drugs in recent months.
Lohalith and others
Fouad Idbafdil from Morocco, who competed in the 2019 world championships in Doha, was sentenced to three years in jail in December after he acknowledged using the hormone EPO, which is prohibited for enhancing endurance.
More so, Dominic Lokolong Atiol, a distance runner also from South Sudan and is currently staying in Kenya, was also suspended for the same reasons as Lohalith last March.
The World Anti-Doping Agency has prohibited TMZ since 2014. TMZ is used to treat angina and enhances blood flow to the heart.
A total of 73 athletes who are refugees are receiving scholarships from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to help them compete for slots at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics. Three years ago, there were 29 athletes in the refugee team who competed at the Tokyo Olympics.
Cover Photo: IG
Source: CNA
Zach Wilson’s fifth-year option with the Broncos is allegedly off