Russia's Olympic hammer champion Lysenko suspended
Tatyana Lysenko, the reigning Olympic hammer champion and two-time former world gold medallist, has been provisionally suspended for doping, the IAAF have announced.
Russian hammer thrower Tatyana Lysenko, the reigning Olympic champion and two-time former world gold medallist, has been provisionally suspended for doping, the IAAF announced Tuesday.
Lysenko, now known under her married name of Tatyana Beloborodova, tested positive after retesting of samples taken at the 2005 world championships in Helsinki, Russian media reported.
The IAAF, however, specified neither the date of the positive test nor for what banned substance the hammer thrower tested positive.
The news comes as a further blow to Russian athletics, with the country's federation sidelined from international competition since November over state-sponsored doping and widespread corruption.
Russia is now scrambling to get its house in order before an IAAF Council meeting in May which will likely decide whether their athletes will be allowed to compete at the Games in August.