SA will be stripped of its World Relays gold medal after one member of the 4x100m team was handed a two year and six months ban for doping.
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This is the first time that a drug ban has cost the country a podium spot at a major athletics competition. Sprint star Akani Simbine delivered a powerful run on the final leg to secure the victory, but he, teammates Gift Leotlela and Clarence Munyai as well as Dlodlo will have to return their medals, SA Doping Institute for Drug-Free Sport CEO Khalid Galant said on Tuesday.
Dlodlo should have been banned for four years, but received a reduction for an early admission of guilt, Galant added. Such reductions in penalty normally also come with a level of co-operation with the investigation.