IOC Upgrades Team Nigeria’s Relay Bronze to Silver

2008 BEIJING OLYMPICS

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has formally written to inform Team Nigeria through the Nigeria Olympic Committee (NOC) that it has upgraded Nigeria’s bronze medal won in the women’s 4×100-metre relay at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing to silver.

The IOC stripped Russia of the gold medal the country won in the women’s sprint relay at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, after a widespread, government-sponsored doping scandal wreaked havoc for the Russian athletes.

The IOC disqualified Yulia Chermoshanskaya, 30, after a reanalysis of the retired runner’s samples from Beijing found traces of two banned substances in her system — stanozolol and turinabol.
Chermoshanskaya was also disqualified from the 200 metres, in which she finished eighth.

In a letter from the IOC addressed to President of NOC, Habu Gumel and signed by Pere Miro, the IOC wrote; “it is our pleasure to inform you that your relay team is now placed second in this same event”.

Belgium has been upgraded to the relay gold, with Nigeria moving up to silver and Brazil to bronze.

And in order to proceed to the reallocation according to the new classification, the IOC asked the NOC to send back the bronze medals and third place diplomas and pins of Ms Franca Idoko, Ms Gloria Kemasuode, Ms Halimat Ismalia and Ms Oludamola Osayomi who were Team Nigeria’s flag bearers in the women sprint relay team.