Race walker Rob Heffernan's expected upgrade to London 2012 Olympic Bronze medallist may happen soon after Sergey Kirdyapkin, the man who finished first, said he is ready to hand over all his medals.
Heffernan finished fourth in the 50k race which was won by Kirdyapkin, but the Russian athlete was banned for over three years after being found guilty of doping.
Speaking to Russian website Allsport, he denied that he violated the anti-doping rules but was ready to accept the punishment in order to come back and compete.
"For the opportunity to come back and prove my good name, I am ready to hand over all the medals as prompted by the IAAF and VLFA (Russian Athletics Federation).”
The athlete was originally allowed to keep his Gold medal after the Russian Anti-Doping Agency annulled Kirdyapkin’s results only until June 11, 2012 and from October 15 2012, outside of the Olympic window, which allowed him to keep his Olympic gold.
However, the IAAF appealed the decision and the outcome is expected in late February, but his comments suggest Heffernan can prepare to become an Olympic medallist.
Kirdyapkin will be eligible to compete at the Rio Olympic games this Summer as his ban was backdated to 2012.
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