Doping retests lead to Olympic medal upgrade for Canadian weightlifter

An Olympic medal upgrade for Christine Girard is a reality with the official stripping of the gold from her Kazakh competitor. But there could be a lot more in store for the Canadian weightlifter.

Maiya Maneza was among eight athletes punished by the International Olympic Committee on Thursday for positive drug tests that surfaced in a retest of samples from the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

The IOC declared that Maneza must give up the gold after testing positive for the steroid stanozolol.

Girard became the first Canadian woman to win an Olympic weightlifting medal when she took bronze in the women's 63-kilogram class in London.

Moving a step up the podium is on the horizon for the 31-year-old Girard, who grew up in Rouyn-Noranda, Que., and now coaches weightlifters in the Vancouver area.

Beijing bronze a possibility

She remains in suspense about not only possibly moving up two steps up to gold from London, but also if she'll be awarded a belated bronze from Beijing, where Girard was fourth.

The International Weightlifting Federation announced over the summer that Svetlana Tsarukaeva of Russia, who finished second ahead of Girard in London, as well as 2008 silver medallist Irina Nekrasova of Kazakhstan, tested positive in doping retests from those Summer Games.

The IOC has yet to take medals away from those women.

So while Girard expects to exchange a bronze for silver at some point, she's still in limbo on other medal matters.

"Now I know it's for sure silver. I feel like it's a good step forward, but it's still not done," she told The Canadian Press. "We still need to hear more news from London and from Beijing.

"My whole life would have been different, if I had the bronze from Beijing and the gold from London."

Olympic weightlifting medals are determined by the sum of each lifter's best result in the snatch and the clean and jerk, with three attempts allowed in each.

With a total of 236 kilograms, Girard narrowly lost out to Tsarukaeva's 237 in London.

She and husband Walter Bailey co-founded the Kilophile Weightlifting Club in Surrey, B.C. in 2012. They have a son who turns two next week and a six-month-old daughter.

Topic of conversation

Girard says what Olympic medals might be coming her way is a topic of conversation among her weightlifting clients.

"They're like 'so, any new medals this week?' she said. "'Not this week, but maybe next week. Who knows?'

"It's a running joke."

Doping samples are stored for up to 10 years so they can be reanalyzed when improved testing technology is developed.

Appeals, and the time it takes for international and domestic sports federations to deal with the stripping of a medal, means a medal redistribution can move at a glacial pace.

Canadian shot-putter Dylan Armstrong received a bronze medal from Beijing over six years after finishing fourth there.

But the IOC seems to be moving with more urgency on doping matters given the barrage of criticism is has taken this year.

Canadian cross-country skier Beckie Scott had two separate ceremonies months apart upgrading her 2002 Olympic bronze to silver and then to gold.

Willing to wait for gold

Girard is willing to wait on a medal ceremony if it means getting the medal — or medals — she ultimately deserves.

"I don't think they will give me a silver medal knowing that in a few months they may have to give me a gold, right?" she said. "In my head, I think it would be a bit more simple that way."

She's looking forward to that day, whenever it comes.

"Anyone who has a medal from the Olympics, no matter the colour, will feel really proud," Girard said. "But it will be bigger than just winning. It's winning in the clean world.

"It's a big message that will be sent, that not only can we be on the podium when we're clean, but end up having what we deserve."