Five Track Athletes Suspended 18 Months in Drug Crackdown

Five track athletes, two of them Americans, have been suspended for at least 18 months for drug offenses, the International Amateur Athletic Federation said Monday from London.

A statement by the IAAF Monday said it had suspended Americans Gary Willicky and August Wolf, who just missed an Olympic medal in 1984 when he finished fourth in the shotput.

The IAAF said that Willicky, a discus thrower, failed an examination May 12 at Monaco, and that Wolf was suspended for refusing to take a test after a meet at Brykelo, Norway, July 7.

Wolf told The Times that he had refused to take the test initially but had subsequently offered to be tested on several occasions and was refused.

Also banned were Zdenka Silhava, world record-holder in the women’s discus, and shotputter Remigius Machura, both of Czechoslovakia; and Mayra Vila, a female javelin thrower from Cuba.

Last Friday, the IAAF suspended Lyudmila Andonova, Bulgaria’s world high jump record-holder, saying she had failed a dope test at a meet at London’s Crystal Palace stadium last July.

John Holt, IAAF general secretary, said that the suspended athletes would be ineligible for domestic and international competition for at least 18 months.