Wanniarachchi stripped of title
Sri Lankan boxer Manju Wanniarachchi has been stripped of his Commonwealth Games gold medal due to his failed drugs test, meaning Wales' Sean McGoldrick is in line to be crowned champion in the bantamweight 56kg weight division.
Wanniarachchi had been due to appear before the Federation Court in Jamaica in January, but an illness precluded his legal representative from attending the hearing and the matter was postponed until Sunday.
A CGF statement read: "The Commonwealth Games Federation's (CGF) Federation Court, meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to consider the matter of Sri Lankan boxer Manju Wanniarachchi, has determined that the athlete be disqualified from the 2010 Commonwealth Games and his competition results at the Delhi Games be nullified."
The statement continued: "The court has ruled that that the medal awarded to him be forfeited and returned to the CGF.
"Subject to the conclusion of any appeals process, the gold medal in the bantamweight 56kg weight division will be awarded to Sean McGoldrick from Wales."
Federation Court chairman, and CGF vice-president, HRH Tunku Imran, said: "The Federation Court has given decision but under the CGF Anti-Doping Standards there is now a 21-day window for the athlete to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
"We understand that this has been a long process for all involved and we hope that it is finalised as soon as possible."
Wanniarachchi returned an adverse analytical finding from an anti-doping test conducted during last October's Games. His test sample was found to contain 19-norandrosterone, a prohibited anabolic agent under category S1 of the World Anti-Doping Agency list of prohibited substances.
Date published :
08 May 2011 - 20:02:04
