sprinter Amaury Golitin suspended for four years by the French Anti-Doping Agency

The ax has fallen for French sprinter Amaury Golitin. The 26-year-old athlete was suspended for four years by the French Anti-Doping Agency (AFLD) for “breaching residence obligations” and “falsifying” documents, announced, Wednesday May 17, in a decision dated March 30.

Temporarily suspended since June 2022, the former pillar of the Italian 4x100m relay risked up to five years of suspension. But by accepting this sentence, she was reduced to four years. A decision that therefore immediately deprives him of the World Cup in Budapest next August and above all of the Paris Olympics in 2024. He will not be able to return to competition before June 2026.

“Three violations” of location obligations

In the columns of The group of March 16, the athlete admitted the facts, returning to his first fault “by not transmitting information on its whereabouts in time for the first quarter of 2021”, writes the newspaper. The second breakthrough comes in 2021, when he is in Poland with France where he is selected for the Chorzow relay world championships (May 1 and 2, 2021). But Amaury Golitin does not update his position, in which he should be at Insep (National Institute of Sport, Competence and Performance), his place of residence.

“Everyone knew I was there. I could be controlled. I took it lightly, I didn’t change my position.”

Amaury Golitin, sprinter

at The Team

The third and final offense occurred just a few weeks later on June 17, 2021. While an AFLD agent went to Insep to carry out an unexpected doping control, Amaury Golitin was not on site and arrives late for the blood sample. Although his check is negative, it is a violation of his location obligations.

The athlete then panics, because this failure is synonymous with a penalty. “They tell me that I have to justify my delay, otherwise it will take me two years and I will miss the Games. So I needed a justification with a serious element”, admitted to entering The group. He then forges his taxi and bank statements, claiming a personal emergency to escape this third violation. On 18 November 2021, the AFLD opened an investigation into suspected forgery of control elements.