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Home » Weighlifting News » 5 Olympic Weightlifting Champions Test Positive from London & Beijing

5 Olympic Weightlifting Champions Test Positive from London & Beijing

Written by David Tao
Last updated on August 2nd, 2023

Update: The IWF has released a statement regarding the positive tests from London and Beijing, reiterating that there were 20 total (10 from each iteration of the Games) and that these included some medal winners. However, the weightlifting governing body is holding off on releasing names — or more statements of any kind — until the IOC and World Anti-Doping Agency procedures are fully carried out. From the IWF site:

The IWF will follow the obligatory procedure set by its Anti-Doping Policy and by the WADA Code and proceed to the provisional suspension of the athletes as soon as the IOC procedures concluded.

No further comments will be provided until the final decisions are pronounced.

In potentially ground-shaking weightlifting news leading up to the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, Iranian outlet farsnews.com reports that IWF President Tamas Ajan — currently in Iran for the Fajr Grand Prix qualification event — has confirmed five recent Olympic champions have positive samples in the wake of urine retests.

The report has since been picked up on several news outlets worldwide. Last week, we found out two Russian medalists from Beijing have received bans after retests found positive samples. But Ajan has specifically noted it’s five gold medalists — four from London, one from Beijing — with newfound positive tests, which would likely lead to them being prohibited from competing in Rio (and having their Olympic gold medals stripped).

Ajan and the IWF haven’t named names just yet. We’ve assembled the full list of weightlifting gold medalists from Beijing and London below; Ajan’s statement indicates five of the below listers will lose their medals and eligibility for Rio (at least).

Stay tuned for more news as it comes.

Olympic weightlifting champions from Beijing:

Women:

Chen Xiexia, 48kg, China

Prapawadee Jaroenrattanatarakoon, 53kg, Thailand

Chen Yanqing, 58kg, China

Pak Hyon-suk, 63kg, China

Liu Chunhong, 69kg, China

Cao Lei, 75kg, China

Jang Mi-ran, +75kg, South Korea

Men:

Long Qingquan, 56kg, China

Zhang Xiangxiang, 62kg, China

Liao Hui, 69kg, China

Sa Jae-hyouk, 77kg, South Korea

Lu Yong, 85kg, China

Ilya Ilyin, 94kg, Kazakhstan

Andrei Aramnau, 105kg, Belarus

Matthias Steiner, +105kg, Germany

Olympic weightlifting champions from London:

Women:

Wang Mingjuan, 48kg, China

Zulfiya Chinshanlo, 53kg, Kazakhstan

Li Xueying, 58kg, China

Maiya Maneza, 63kg, Kazakhstan

Rim Jong-sim, 69kg, North Korea

Svetlana Podobedova, 75kg, Kazakhstan

Zhou Lulu, +75kg, China

Men:

Om Yun-chol, 56kg, North Korea

Kim Un-guk, 62kg, North Korea

Lin Qingfeng, 69kg, China

Lu Xiaojun, 77kg, China

Adrian Zielinksi, 85kg, Poland

Ilya Ilyin, 94kg, Kazakhstan

Oleksiy (Aleksey) Torokhtiy, 105kg, Ukraine

Behdad Salimi, +105kg, Iran

About David Tao

BarBend's Co-Founder and CEO, David is a veteran of the health & fitness industry, with nearly a decade of experience building and running editorial teams in the space. He also serves as a color commentator for both National and International weightlifting competitions, many through USA Weightlifting.

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