US sprinter Debbie Dunn withdraws from Olympics after drug test

Debbie Dunn, a US Olympic sprinter, has withdrawn from the 2012 Summer Games in London after a positive drug test, The Chicago Tribune reported.

The 34-year-old Dunn tested positive for elevated testosterone-epitestosterone levels – indicating possible anabolic steroid use – at the recent US Olympic trials in Eugene, Ore.

After a fourth-place finish in the 400 meters at the trials, she was part of a group of athletes that would likely form the 4×400-relay team.

“While I work with USADA to resolve this matter, I am withdrawing from my relay pool position for the 2012 Olympic Games,” Dunn’s statement to The Tribune said. “I do not want any issue like this to distract from my teammates’ focus for the biggest meet of their lives. I wish Team USA best in London as I work toward resolving this matter.”

The USADA said it’s now examining Dunn’s “B” sample to verify the positive test.

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Dunn, a Norfolk, Va., native, won the 400 at the 2010 world indoor championships.

The USADA said it found banned synthetic testosterone in a urine sample, The New York Times reported.

“As in all cases, all athletes are innocent until and unless proven otherwise through the established full, fair legal process which was approved by athletes, the US Olympic Committee and all Olympic sports organizations,” the USADA’s Travis T. Tygart told The Times.

Dunn was to run today in London when her test results became known, The Virginian-Pilot reported.

The US Olympic Committee hasn’t released a comment, and told The Tribune it wasn’t sure Dunn could be replaced in London at this late stage.

“She’s confused, and it’s definitely a shock to me, I’m flabbergasted,” her coach, Steve Riddick, told Pilotonline.com.