IAAF suspends 28 athletes after "adverse findings" from sample testing

The samples were found to be suspect

The International Association of Athletics Federation (IAAF) has just released a statement saying that 28 athletes who were part of the 2005 and 2007 World Championships have been suspended. Their samples, which were retested, returned what the organisation described in its statement as “adverse findings”, reported the BBC.

While the 2005 Games were hosted in the Finnish capital of Helsinki, Japan hosted the 2007 edition in the city of Osaka.

The organisation says that the majority of these athletes have not been an active part of competitive sport, having long since retired, saying that ‘very few’ are still active.

These revelations come in the wake of a report in the Sunday Times, which obtained classified IAAF data from an anonymous whistleblower regarding suspicious blood test data from several athletes. The English newspaper said it had employed ‘two of the world’s foremost forensic scientists’ to analyse the results, and they had indicated the widespread use of performance-enhancing drugs.

In addition to claims of doping among IAAF athletes, the paper also alleged that 7 of 12 winners at the London Marathon had also shown “suspicious results” in their bloodwork, which led to London Marathon organisers also lashing out at the IAAF, alleging that the organisation did not allow London Marathon management to look at the results.

The BBC says “no British athletes are involved”, which exonerates Olympian Mo Farah, who was under fire after it was alleged in a BBC Panorama investigation that his coach, Alberto Salazar, had been involved in doping several of his athletes. These claims were backed up by an array of Salazar’s former trainees, in addition to his one-time second in command, Steve Magness. Farah and American Olympian Galen Rupp are two of Salazar’s most notable students, and it is still unclear if Rupp is in the clear following this news.

Earlier last month, Rupp qualified for this year’s World Championships, which will be held in Beijing.

Also subject to doping claims is American athletics champion Justin Gatlin. It is also unknown if he is part of these allegations, and representatives for IAAF have said that they cannot release any names “due to legal reasons.”

The 2015 IAAF World Championships will be held at the end of August at the Bird’s Nest Stadium in Beijing, China.