American sprinter Gay receives one-year suspension

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Sprinter Tyson Gay accepted a one-year suspension Friday after testing positive for a banned substance nearly a year ago and returned the silver medal he won in the men’s 400-meter relay at the 2012 London Olympics.

USADA announced that Gay’s one-year ban began June 23, the day his sample was collected at the U.S. championships.

As part of the penalty, Gay, the American record-holder in the 100, also accepted loss of results dating to July 15, 2012, the date of when he first used a product that contained a banned substance. He was a member of the relay team at the London Games that finished second to a Jamaican team led by Usain Bolt. The Americans set a national record with a time of 37.04 seconds. He has given his medal back to the United States Olympic Committee.

USADA said in a statement that upon receiving notification of his positive tests, Gay voluntarily withdrew from all competition prior to the 2013 world championships and has not competed since. The 31-year-old Gay could’ve been given a penalty twice as long, but received consideration after assisting USADA in the investigation. USADA said he tested positive for the presence of an exogenous androgenic anabolic steroid.

“We appreciate Tyson doing the right thing by immediately withdrawing from competition once he was notified, accepting responsibility for his decisions, and fully and truthfully cooperating with us in our ongoing investigation into the circumstances surrounding his case,” USADA CEO Travis Tygart said in a statement.

In a statement released by USA Track and Field, CEO Max Siegel said the organization is “gravely disappointed any time an athlete uses performance-enhancing drugs, and Tyson Gay’s case serves as a lesson about the consequences of making poor decisions. We appreciate that Tyson accepted responsibility and has assisted USADA by providing information to help battle the use of PEDs.”