Disgraced discus thrower cleared for Beijing Games

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Hungarian discus thrower Robert Fazekas, who was stripped of his gold medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics for doping, was cleared earlier today by Hungary’s Olympic Commmittee to compete at the Beijing Games.

Fazekas’ request to compete was approved after the athlete met the Olympic qualifying standard at a competition in Slovenia earlier this week.

Associated Press reports that Fazekas, his coach, his doctor and athletics officials guaranteed in writing that the discus thrower remained clean during training and will stay that way during the Games.

Fazekas was one of five Hungarian athletes who failed doping tests at the Athens Games. He was stripped of his medal and served a two-year competition ban.

That action didn’t sit well with some Hungarian fans who raised money to provide Fazekas and the other disgraced Olymlpians replicas of their Athens medals.

The oversized replicas showed the Greek goddess of victory, Nike, but her face was distorted to reflect fans’ disgust with the treatment of their idols by Olympic officials. The flip side included a Hungarian description that translates as ‘golden justice.’

-- Greg Johnson