Long Jump, Women

Naide Gomes (POR) was favored, having won the World Indoor earlier in the year, and leading the world list. But she fouled her first two jumps in the qualifying round and then stutter-stepped on the third, failing to make the final. The early leader in the final was the defending champion, Tatyana Lebedeva (RUS), but Brazil’s Maureen Maggi took the lead near the end of the round with 7.04 (23-1¼). It would prove to be the winning jump. Lebedeva scared the lead with 7.03 (23-0¾) in the final round, but it was only good enough for the silver medal. The bronze medal originally went to Nigerian Blessing Okagbare, whose best jump was 6.91 (22-8) in the first round, but she was fortunate to be in the final. She had placed only 13th in qualifying, but when Ukrainian Lyudmila Blonska was disqualified after a doping positive was revealed from the heptathlon, Okagbare was advanced to the final in her stead. In an interview, she claimed her name (Blessing) was the reason for this lucky occurrence. Gold medalist Maggi was married to former Formula I race Antonio Pizzonia. As noted below, Okagbare would benefit from another doping DQ and eventually receive a silver medal for this event.

That was how the event and the results seemed to have ended. In 2015, however, the IOC began re-testing samples from the 2008 Beijing and 2012 London Olympics, using newer, more advanced testing techniques, in an effort to find those who had used performance enhancing drugs (PEDs), but in whom it could not be detected at the time of those Olympics. This was one of the many events affected.

In January 2017 Tatyana Lebedeva (RUS) had a positive re-test for turinabol (dehydrochloromethyltestosterone) and was tentatively disqualified. However, Lebedeva lawyered up and appealed the disqualification to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), but the appeal was rejected by the CAS in July 2018. At the time her doping was revealed Lebedeva was actually a member of the Russian state Duma, the IAAF Women’s Committee, and the World Olympians Association Executive Committee. The silver and bronze medals were re-assigned with Blessing Okagbare receiving the silver medal and Chelsea Hammond (JAM) the bronze medal.