1904: One of the first evidences of doping, at the St Louis Olympics. Thomas Hicks (US) won the marathon and collapsed. It took hours to revive him; he had taken brandy mixed with strychnine to help him win his gold medal.

Tom Simpson: During the 1967 Tour de France, Tom Simpson collapsed during the ascent of the Mont Ventoux. Despite mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and oxygen, plus a helicopter airlift to a nearby hospital, Simpson died. Two tubes of amphetamines and a further empty tube were found in the rear pocket of his racing jersey.

Ben Johnson: Canadian sprinter coasted to gold medal in a world record time in the 100m at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul. He subsequently failed the drug test when stanozolol was found in his urine. He later admitted to using the steroid as well as Dianabol, Cypionate, Furazabol, and human growth hormone among other things. Johnson was stripped of his gold medal.

Diego Maradona: Argentine football legend Maradona tested positive for the banned substance, ephedrine, during the 1994 World Cup and was banned from playing football for a year.

Team Festina: In 1998 the entire ‘Festina’ team were excluded from the Tour de France following the discovery of a team car containing large amounts of various performance-enhancing drugs. The team director later admitted that some of the cyclists were routinely given banned substances.

Kelli White and US stars: 2003 saw US sprinter Kelli White stripped of her two gold medals from the World Track & Field Championships for testing positive for Modafinil, Olympic 4x400 m gold medallist Calvin Harrison, and Olympic and world champ 4x100m relay gold medallist Chryste Gaines all tested positive for Modafinil, while 25-time US middle distance national champion and two-time 1,500 m world champion silver medallist Regina Jacobs, 2003 US national shot put champion Kevin Toth, hammer thrower John McEwan all test positive for designer steroid THG.

... contd.