Boris KhodorovskyAll materialsTen years ago, journalists who worked at the London Olympics celebrated the success of our athletes. Several years have passed and everything has changed. In March 2016, by the decision of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), Sergey Kirdyapkin, who won the 50 km run, Yulia Zaripova, who won the steeple chase, and Tatyana Lysenko, who by that time had changed her surname to Beloborodova, were deprived of gold medals. She won the hammer throw. And, by the way, refused to return the won award. All three Russian champions were found to have the banned steroid turinabol during doping tests. In 2017, based on the analysis of the biological passport data, Maria Savinova lost her London gold medal. But she was ahead of the South African (or South African?) Kasper Semenya at a distance of 800 m. In order for this scandalous runner to still be allowed to compete in women's competitions, she had to artificially lower her testosterone levels. In London, Savinova told the author of these notes that even being in the same dressing room with a rival (or rival?) from South Africa is uncomfortable, but you can win. As it turned out, due to manipulations falling under an anti-doping rule violation. In 2019, by decision of the CAS, high jumper Ivan Ukhov ceased to be the Olympic champion in London. Then it was time to carefully study the data of the Moscow Anti-Doping Laboratory, which the notorious Grigory Rodchenkov presented to the world community. In the spring of this year, Elena Lashmanova was disqualified and deprived of the «gold» of London, as well as the 2013 World Cup in Moscow, a pupil of the great ten years ago, and now disgraced, scandalous and handshake coach Viktor Chegin from Saransk. The next victim of Rodchenkov's denunciation (sorry, I don't want to call it differently) was Natalya Antyukh, who won the 400 m hurdles in London. At the 2004 Olympics in Athens, she won bronze in the 400 m hurdles and silver in the 4×400 relay. Unable to qualify for Beijing, the St. Petersburg runner decided to change her track and field specialization, concentrating on hurdling. In fact, it was a return to basics. After all, at the World Youth Olympics in Moscow in 1998, Antyukh ran 400 hurdles. In London, Antyukh literally endured at the last meters of the distance, not allowing the American Lashinda Dimus to get around her in the finishing cages. “If I had to run 410 or even 405 meters, I could not stand it,” admitted Natalya, with whom we had known each other for a long time and talked immediately after her victorious finish. endure.» By the time the 2012 Olympics started, Antyukh had already turned 31. She understood that she would not have another Olympic chance.
