Chinese marathon runner kicked out of games for tests positive banned substance

Chinese marathon runner Sun Yingjie was suspended from competition at China's National Games after testing positive for a banned testosterone derivative, organizers said Friday.Testers found the substance in a sample submitted by Sun after her second place finish in Monday's 10,000 meters race, the games' organizing committee said in a notice posted on its Web site.

Sun, 26, is the first athlete kicked out of the games for doping. She was also stripped of her 1,500 meters silver medal and her Locomotive team was barred from competition for the games' "Ethics in Sports" award. Sun had been scheduled to appear in Saturday's 5,000 meters race.

Sun won Sunday's marathon event at Beijing, but submitted a clean sample following the race and will be allowed to keep her medal, China's official Xinhua News Agency reported.

Organizers had vowed to carry out 1,600 urine tests during the games, 20 percent more than at the last edition in 2001.

Sun could face a two-year suspension if her second sample also tests positive.

China has struggled to rehabilitate its reputation following a string of doping scandals in the 1990s, when 32 of its swimmers alone were caught for drug offenses, two of them twice.

Before Friday, Chinese sports authorities had reported catching 26 athletes this year for using banned substances.

This year's edition of the quadrennial National Games is the last before the 2008 Olympics and competition among the nearly 10,000 athletes has been fierce. The games end on Sunday, reports the AP. I.L.