Valerie Adams awarded Olympic gold medal
BREAKING NEWS
Published: 10:31PM Monday August 13, 2012 Source: ONE News
Valerie Adams has been awarded the gold medal for shot put at the London Olympic Games.
This follows an announcement from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) today to exclude Belarus's Nadzeya Ostapchuk from the Games of the XXX Olympiad in London.
She has been stripped of the gold medal.
Nadezhda Ostapchuk has tested positive for metenolone paving the way for New Zealand's Valerie Adams to take gold in the women's shot put at London 2012.
Adams was advised of the news moments ago by Chef de Mission Dave Currie.
Ostapchuk's failed test sees the 31 year old stripped of her medal and excluded from the Olympic Games.
The New Zealand Olympic Committee Secretary General Kereyn Smith congratulated Adams on her gold medal and says the honour is well deserved. She added that the vast majority of New Zealand athletes are proud to compete cleanly on the world's stage.
Currie said the news was wonderful and is very proud of Adams.
Adams threw 20.70m in the shot put final at the Olympic Stadium on 6th August and was awarded silver behind the Belarusian who had taken gold with 21.36m. It was the first time Adams had been beaten by Ostapchuk in nearly two years.
While at total of now twelve athletes at London 2012 have been excluded following anti-doping tests, Ostapchuk is the first athlete at the London Games to have been stripped of a medal.