US Judo Fighter Expelled After Testing Positive for Marijuana
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MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP/Getty Images(LONDON) — American judo fighter Nicholas Delpopolo was expelled from the Olympics today for failing a drug test, which he said was caused by mistakenly eating something that had been baked with pot.
“My positive test was caused by my inadvertent consumption of food that I did not realize had been baked with marijuana before I left for the Olympic Games,” Delpopolo, 23, said in a statement released by the U.S. Olympic Committee.
Delpopolo’s expulsion from the games came after he placed seventh in the 73-kilogram judo event on July 30. Immediately after competing, Delpopolo, who is from New Jersey, provided a urine sample that tested positive for a chemical found in marijuana. Delpopolo is the first of the 10,500 athletes in London to fail an in-competition drug test.
The International Olympic Committee disqualified Delpopolo from the event and ordered that his diploma be reallocated to the fighters who placed beneath him.
“I apologize to U.S. Olympic Committee, to my teammates, and to my fans, and I am embarrassed by this mistake,” Delpopolo said in a statement. “I look forward to representing my country in the future, and will rededicate myself to being the best judo athlete that I can be.”
The U.S. Olympic Committee released a statement supporting Delpopolo’s disqualification.
“[The USOC] absolutely committed to clean competition and stringent anti-doping penalties,” spokesman Patrick Sandusky said. “Any positive test, for any banned substance, comes with the appropriate consequences and we absolutely support the disqualification.”
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