Rashid Ramzi has been banned for two years by the Bahrain Athletics Association after being stripped of his 1,500m gold medal from the 2008 Beijing Olympics for doping. The Moroccan-born Ramzi was among five athletes who tested positive last April in retroactive tests for CERA, an advanced version of the blood-boosting drug EPO. The Bahrain association backdated Ramzi's ban to May 3, 2009. Ramzi was the only gold medalist from Beijing caught using performance-enhancing drugs. He had given Bahrain its first Olympic track-and-field gold medal by winning the 1,500, one of the most prestigious events in the sport. Asbel Kipruto Kiprop of Kenya was upgraded from silver to gold in the 1,500.
