Albanian lifter banned from London for steroids

Albanian weightlifter Hysen Pulaku has been excluded from the London Olympics after testing positive for steroids, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced today.

Albanian weightlifter Hysen Pulaku has been excluded from the London Olympics after testing positive for steroids, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced on Saturday.

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The 20-year-old failed a drug test July 23 and will have his Olympic accreditation revoked, the IOC said.

Pulaku, who was to compete in the men's 77kg category, is the first athlete to be thrown out of the Games for cheating.

More than 100 athletes were prohibited from competing in London over doping offences that were uncovered in the six months leading up to the Games, the IOC announced on Friday.