Jones handed 2-yr ban
Marion Jones was on Friday handed a two-year ban by athletics' world ruling body, the IAAF, which recommended that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) withdraw all five of the US sprinter's Olympic medals after she admitted doping.
The International Association of Athletics Federations reviewed Jones' case in light of her admission that she was using the prohibited substance known as "the clear" beginning on September 1, 2000.
The IAAF said the two-year ban would start from the date of her "acceptance of sanction on October 8, 2007, (and would run) until October 7, 2009".
The now-retired Jones, once hailed as the world's greatest woman athlete, is considered disqualified from all competitions on or subsequent to September 1, 2000, a ruling that also means that all her individual and team competitive results from that date are also annulled, it added.
The IAAF added that the ban would also include the "forfeiture and return of all awards and medals obtained in relation to the above competitions ... (and the) forfeiture and return of money awarded to her in relation to the above competitions".
Jones was the track and field star of the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, winning individual gold in the 100m and 200m, and team gold in the 4x400m relay. She also picked up two bronzes in the long jump and 4x100m relay.
"The IAAF Council further recommends to the IOC Executive Board to disqualify Jones and the USA women's 4x100m and 4x400m relay teams from the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000 and to insist on the return of all medals and diplomas," it said.
Jones' medal tally also includes three golds and one bronze garnered at the World Championships before September 2000, and a gold and silver in the 200m and 100m in the 2001 edition of the biannual event in Edmonton, Canada.
Jones last month handed back her five Olympic medals after admitting in a US court to using performance-enhancing drugs.
Greek sprinter Ekaterini Thanou, who finished second behind Jones in the 100m in Sydney, could now be awarded the gold.
But Thanou's situation poses a problem for the IOC as she was given a two-year ban for allegedly faking a motorbike crash to cover up missing a drug test during the 2004 Summer Games.
The United States Olympic Committee has also asked Jones to repay more than 100,000 dollars in prize and bonus money.
Last month, Jones pleaded guilty to a charge of lying to US federal agents over her drug use, admitting that she used the steroid THG, produced by the Bay Area Laboratory Cooperative (BALCO) and known as "the clear", from September 2000 until July 2001.
She claimed that her former coach Trevor Graham had told her she was taking flaxseed oil, but by November 2003, she realised it was in fact a performance enhancing drug.
Jones was one of many high-profile athletes who testified before a federal grand jury investigating BALCO, a probe that has resulted in five convictions.
Jones' former partner Tim Montgomery was banished and his world 100m record run erased based on evidence collected in the BALCO probe.
Jones herself had steadfastly denied ever using performance-enhancing drugs, even as the BALCO-spawned suspicions swirled around her.
She even sued BALCO founder Victor Conte - who was convicted of steroid peddling - for defamation over his accusations on US television that she was a drugs cheat, later settling out of court.
Jones is the latest in a line of the highest-profile athletes convicted of using banned drugs, joining a hall of shame including Canadian Ben Johnson and the 100m Olympics gold medallist of 2004, Justin Gatlin.
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