Chinese weightlifter Lyu Xiaojun celebrates after a lift in the men's 77kg event at Rio 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, August 10, 2016. /CFP
Chinese weightlifting great Lyu Xiaojun will be awarded the 2016 Rio Olympics gold medal in the men's 77-kilogram category after Nijat Rahimov of Kazakhstan was stripped of his title and banned for eight years for violation of anti-doping rules.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport said on Tuesday the Kazakh lifter was guilty of "four urine substitutions" and was thus disqualified from all his results since March 2016.
Rahimov's world record at Rio 2016 was controversial even at the time. It came one year after he served a previous ban for doping when competing for Azerbaijan.
His integrity was questioned by rival Mohamed Mahmoud from Egypt, who took the bronze medal.
"Maybe after some doping controls, some things will change," Mahmoud said in Rio.
Lyu Xiaojun of China competes in the men's 77kg weightlifting event at London 2012 Olympic Games in London, UK, August 1, 2022. /CFP
China's Lyu will be upgraded to become a three-time Olympic champion following his wins at London 2012 and Tokyo 2020.
He won the gold medal in the 77kg class with a total of 379kg in London.
He lifted a total of 214kg, also in the 77kg class in Rio, and dominated the 81kg class by lifting a total of 374kg in the Tokyo Olympics last year.
Lyu Xiaojun of China celebrates after a lift in the men's 81kg weightlifting event at Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, July 31, 2021. /CFP
Lyu became the oldest men's Olympic champion in weightlifting in Tokyo, at the age of 37.
"I am happy that the gold medal will be awarded to be, even though it is late," he said.
(With input from agencies)