“Since 2004, the IOC has had an open file on the BALCO case —it set up a disciplinary commission with a view to investigating how the affair might have affected the Olympic Games competitions. The information that Marion Jones might provide may prove to be key in moving this case forward.”

Under statute of limitations rules, the IOC and other sports bodies can go back eight years to strip medals and nullify results. In Jones’ case, that would include the 2000 Olympics, where she won gold in the 100 meters, 200 meters and 4x400 relay and bronze in the long jump and 4x100 relay. In addition to any jail term, Jones could face a long competition ban from the US Anti-Doping Agency.

The International Association of Athletics Federations said it was waiting for official notification from USADA setting out the details of Jones’ reported admission. If she admits to having been on drugs during a specific period, the IAAF could strip Jones of all her medals and results from the world championships and other events from that time. She won three gold medals, a silver and a bronze at the 1999 and 2001 worlds.

The triple gold medallist in Sydney said she took a substance known as “the clear” for two years, beginning in 1999, and that she got it from former coach Trevor Graham, who told her it was flaxseed oil, the newspaper reported.

“The clear” is a performance-enhancing drug linked to the Bay Area Laboratory Co-Operative (BALCO), the lab at the center of the steroids scandal in professional sports. Baseball’s home run king Barry Bonds of the San Francisco Giants and baseball sluggers Jason Giambi and Gary Sheffield have been linked to BALCO and were among more than two dozen athletes who testified before a federal grand jury in 2003.

... contd.