Nigerian athlete Blessing Okagbare reportedly faces 4-year ban for taking a banned substance

Nigerian athlete Blessing Okagbare has reportedly been banned for four years after failing in her unsuccessful appeal over a suspension for taking a banned substance. 

Okagbare was suspended from the 2020 Olympic Games after testing positive for a Growth Hormone from a sample collected from her during an out-of-competition test in July 2021. 

The sprinter had won her heat and qualified into the 100meters semi-final of the Olympics before The Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU), a unit of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) founded to combat doping in athletics, announced her suspension. 

According to the Guardian, the 32-year-old went on to appeal her suspension and requested to see the result of her B Sample. 

The report states that the sample returned another positive result. 

A source in the report revealed that the Delta State-born athlete had been banned for four years. 

Before her appeal, the source stated that Okagabre would have gotten away with just a two to three-year ban. 

No official statement has been made to Okagbare's status in the sports. 

The 32-year-old is the leading face of women sports in Nigeria.

She is an Olympic and World Championships medalist in the long jump and a world medalist in the 200 meters. She also holds the Women's 100 meters Commonwealth Games record for the fastest time at 10.85 seconds.