Austrian cross-country skier Johannes Duerr was banned from the Sochi Games after testing positive for EPO, a blood booster, according to the Associated Press.
Austria’s Olympic Committee President Karl Stoss called it “a black day for us.” Duerr told the AP that he could “only apologize to everyone.”
“I am not afraid [of whatever consequences come],” Duerr said. “I am in a way glad it has come to an end ... This is the worst thing I’ve done in my life. This is very, very tough. You can’t explain this in three sentences.”
This is now the fifth doping case, with the AP deeming this the most serious one, as the four other instances involved minor stimulants found in food supplements. None of the five athletes won medals, as the rest of the current list includes Latvian hockey player Vitalijs Pavlovs, Ukrainian cross-country skier Marina Lisogor, German biathlete Evi Sachenbacher-Stehle and Italian bobsledder William Frullani.
Duerr finished eighth in the men’s skiathlon on Feb. 9 and was set to compete in the 50 km mass start event before being banned.