France's Samba-Mayela provisionally suspended by AIU

Sept 25 : Olympic 100-metre hurdles silver medallist Cyrena Samba-Mayela has been provisionally suspended for an alleged whereabouts violation, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) said on Friday.

French media reported last month that Samba-Mayela, France's sole track and field medallist at the Paris Olympics, had recorded three whereabouts failures within a 12-month period.

Under anti-doping rules, athletes who accumulate three whereabouts failures, whether through missed tests, filing failures or a combination of both, within a year can be charged with an anti-doping rule violation and face a ban of up to two years.

The ban puts her participation at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics in doubt.

Her agent, Maka Haidara, said at the time that the proceedings were related solely to whereabouts obligations and not to the use of any prohibited substance, adding that Samba-Mayela had complied with the process and was cooperating with the investigation.

Samba-Mayela has not competed since July and later withdrew from the European Championships in Birmingham due to a calf injury.