Natalya Antyukh and Andrey Silnov among four Russian athletes with pending Court of Arbitration for Sport cases

Four Russian athletes, including Olympic gold medallists Natalya Antyukh and Andrey Silnov, face doping cases related to ‘McLaren evidence’, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) has announced.

Each case is pending before the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Antyukh won 400m hurdles gold at the London 2012 Games, while Silnov claimed the 2008 Olympic high jump title.

Hammer thrower Oksana Kondratyeva and 2006 world indoor 1500m silver medallist Yelena Soboleva are also named on the AIU’s list of pending first instance cases.

According to the list, Antyukh’s alleged violation is ‘use of a prohibited substance/method’ while the alleged violation by Silnov is ‘use of a prohibited substance/method’ and ‘presence of a prohibited substance (DHCMT)’.

Antyukh won her Olympic 400m hurdles title ahead of USA’s Lashinda Demus, while Silnov got his Olympic high jump gold ahead of Britain’s Germaine Mason, who died in 2017 after being involved in a motorcycle crash in Jamaica.

Other than stating that Silnov’s case relates to ‘DHCMT’, the banned anabolic steroid turinabol, the AIU does not give any specific details but should it date back to when the Russian won his Olympic title, Mason could be in line for a posthumous upgrade to Olympic gold.

Mason, a good friend of Jamaican sprint star Usain Bolt, was born in Jamaica and won world indoor bronze for the nation in 2004 but his father, David, was born in London and from 2006 Mason switched his allegiance to represent Great Britain.

Many tributes were paid to Mason following news of his death, including from senior British Athletics high jump coach Fuzz Caan, who worked closely with Mason at the time of his Olympic success.

On Friday Caan posted a picture of Mason on Twitter with the caption “Germaine Mason. Olympic Gold Medalist.”

Germaine Mason
Olympic Gold Medalist pic.twitter.com/OytSU2ofpG

— Fuzz Caan (@fuzzcoaching) March 27, 2020

‘McLaren evidence’ relates to the 2016 World Anti-Doping Agency-commissioned report on Russian doping, authored by Richard McLaren.

The dates for the hearings at the Court of Arbitration for Sport are yet to be announced.