Russian weightlifter loses 2012 Olympic silver in doping case

Russian weightlifter Apti Aukhadov was stripped of his silver medal from the 2012 London Olympics on Tuesday after testing positive for steroids in a reanalysis of his doping samples.

Aukhadov tested positive for turinabol and drostanolone and was retroactively disqualified from the London Games, the International Olympic Committee said.

Aukhadov, who is from the Chechnya region and was 19 at the time of the London Games, was ordered to return his silver medal in the 85-kilogram division.

He is the latest athlete to be officially sanctioned by the IOC following retesting of more than 1,000 doping samples from the London Olympics and 2008 Beijing Games.

The IOC stores samples for 10 years so they can be retested when improved methods become available. The IOC has reported 98 positive cases from recent testing of London and Beijing samples.

The IOC ordered the international weightlifting federation to adjust the London weightlifting results and consider any further sanctions against Aukhadov, who could face a ban of at least two years. His gold medals from the 2013 world championships and European championships could also be annulled by the IWF.

If the IOC reallocates the London Olympic medals, Iran's Kianoush Rostami is in line to be promoted to the silver, and Tarek Yehia of Egypt to the bronze. The gold medal was won by Adrian Zielinski of Poland, who was barred from this year's Rio de Janeiro Olympics after failing a drug test ahead of the games.

An IOC disciplinary commission report said Aukhadov initially replied that he was "shocked" by the retest result and did not accept the finding. However, he did not attend the opening and retesting of the backup "B" sample, or attend a hearing, or put up any further defence.

"Beyond alleging to be shocked, the athlete does not bring forth any explanation in respect of the fact that two different anabolic steroids were found in his sample," the three-man panel said.

The IOC also announced Tuesday that Ukrainian pole vaulter Maksym Mazuryk was disqualified from the London Games, where he finished 18th, after testing positive for turinabol in a reanalysis of his stored samples.

The IOC disciplinary panel said Mazuryk was tested in Kyiv in July 2012 before the games. He accepted the positive finding and did not request a retesting of the "B" sample.