Tyler Hamilton of the US in action in the men's 48-km individual time trial event at Vouliagmeni near Athens, as part of the Athens 2004 Olympic Games in this August 18, 2004 file photo. — Reuters LONDON – Just days before the eight-year deadline expires, the IOC formally stripped American cyclist Tyler Hamilton of his 2004 gold for doping Friday and awarded the medal to a Russian rider who now becomes a three-time Olympic champion. The International Olympic Committee executive board notified Hamilton — a former teammate of Lance Armstrong — that he has been disqualified from his victory in the road race time trial at the Athens Games. The medal will now go to Viatcheslav Ekimov, another former Armstrong teammate who already has two Olympic golds. American Bobby Julich will be moved up from bronze to silver, and Michael Rogers of Australia from fourth to bronze. After years of denials, Hamilton told CBS's “60 Minutes” last year that he had repeatedly used performance-enhancing drugs. The IOC asked for documents from the US Anti-Doping Agency before reallocating the medals. “Hamilton will be asked to hand the medal back and there will be an exchange of medals with the other athletes,” IOC spokesman Mark Adams said. The IOC has an eight-year statute of limitations for changing Olympic results. The period expires at the end of this month. USADA said at the time of Hamilton's doping admission that he had turned over his gold medal to the doping agency, but the IOC had not received it and the race result had not been officially overturned. Hamilton sent a letter to IOC President Jacques Rogge on June 28 volunteering to give up the medal and withdraw his name from the record of Olympic champions. “I very much appreciate that you have expressed regret for having used performance-enhancing drugs and that you hope that, through your example and future efforts, this will discourage others from using performance-enhancing drugs,” Rogge replied in a July 16 letter to Hamilton. — AP
