Two Chinese female weightlifters have lost their appeals against being stripped of their 2008 Beijing Olympic gold medals for doping.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport said Monday that the IOC was right to disqualify Cao Lei from the 75-kilogram class and Liu Chunhong in the 69-kilo event at their home Summer Games.
FILE - In this Aug. 15, 2008, file photo, Cao Lei, of China, holds up her gold medal in the women's 75 kg. of the weightlifting competition at the Beijing 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China. (AP Photo/Andres Leighton, file)
Both tested positive for GHRP-2, which stimulates production of growth hormone, in reanalysis last year of their samples taken in Beijing. Liu also tested positive for sibutramine, a banned stimulant.
FILE - In this Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2008, file photo, Liu Chunhong, of China displays her gold medal in the women's 69 kg of the weightlifting competition at the Beijing 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China. (AP Photo/Andres Leighton, file)
Because the cases were similar, the IOC disciplinary commission urged the International Weightlifting Federation to investigate Chinese team coaches and officials.
Weightlifting risks being dropped from the 2024 Olympics due to longstanding doping problems, and the International Olympic Committee has requested a "satisfactory report" from the governing body by December.
In retesting of samples from the 2008 Beijing Olympics and 2012 London Olympics, about 50 doping cases have been found and more than 25 medals were stripped. Most involved steroids used by athletes from the former Soviet Union republics.
The cases of Cao and Liu involved a growth hormone releasing peptide which could not be detected with the testing technology available in 2008.
The lawyer for both athletes argued to CAS that the cases should be dropped because GHRP-2 was not specifically named in the prohibited list of substances published by the World Anti-Doping Agency.
The court's single judge accepted the IOC case that a section of the list relating to "hormones and related substances" applied in these cases.
Even without three gold medals stripped from Chinese lifters, the home team still won five of the 15 titles in Beijing.
Alex Cora was fired as manager of the Boston Red Sox over the weekend.
That news could have come from any of three major markets.
The Red Sox actually took two of three at Baltimore, but they're still in last place in their division at 11-17. The New York Mets have been even worse, scoring one run Sunday while getting swept in a home doubleheader against lowly Colorado. The Mets have lost 15 of 17 to fall to 9-19.
And they actually have company in the NL East cellar, because the Philadelphia Phillies have dropped 11 of 12 and have the same 9-19 record.
Mets manager Carlos Mendoza was still employed as of Sunday night, and so was Philadelphia's Rob Thomson. And all three of these big-market teams can take solace in the notion that it's hard to play your way out of contention before the end of April — if you have enough talent to recover.
Right now, FanGraphs still gives the Red Sox a 34% chance of making the playoffs, and the Phillies and Mets each a 33% chance. That means there's a decent shot one of those three teams will turn it around and reach the postseason.
But so far this season has been dire for each of them. The Mets and Phillies have the two worst run differentials in baseball, and New York will be without shortstop Francisco Lindor for at least a few weeks because of a calf injury. That won't help an offense that has scored the fewest runs in baseball.
Ace Zack Wheeler finally made his 2026 debut for Philadelphia on Saturday, and the Phillies snapped a 10-game skid, but a loss Sunday dropped them to 10 1/2 games behind first-place Atlanta.
The Red Sox are a little closer to first place, trailing the Yankees by only seven, but their run differential (minus-11) looks tolerable only because of a 17-1 win Saturday in which the Orioles brought in a position player to pitch during a 10-run ninth inning.
The next month is critical for these three teams. If they keep playing like this through Memorial Day, then it really might be too late to come back.
Both the lowest batting average in the National League and the highest ERA — among qualifying players — belong to members of the Phillies. Who are they?
The Milwaukee Brewers had to face each of last year's Cy Young Award winners in back-to-back games Thursday and Friday. Tarik Skubal took the mound for Detroit against Milwaukee, and the Tigers eventually won 5-4 on a home run by Spencer Torkelson. Then Paul Skenes took a perfect game into the seventh against the Brewers in a game Pittsburgh won 6-0.
The most surprising pitchers' duel of the week may have occurred Sunday, when the Nationals and White Sox played nine scoreless innings before Washington won 2-1 in 10. The Nationals are averaging 5.38 runs per game, the fourth-most in the major leagues. They've allowed 5.9, the second-most in baseball. Washington was actually leading the majors in both runs scored and runs allowed entering Wednesday's action.
The pitching was expected to be bad. The offense has made the team watchable thanks to James Wood (10 homers), CJ Abrams (.897 OPS) and a good start from Joey Wiemer (.320 average).
In 14 of Washington's 29 games, at least one team has scored eight runs.
Milwaukee's Kyle Harrison struck out 12 in six one-hit innings in Sunday's 5-0 win over Pittsburgh. That prevented the Pirates from sweeping a series at Milwaukee for the first time since 2016.
Kansas City was down by three with two outs and nobody on in the bottom of the ninth before rallying to tie it Sunday against the Los Angeles Angels. The Royals eventually won 11-9 in 10 innings.
The Angels actually led 6-0 in the fifth, and it was 8-5 in the ninth before a triple by Vinnie Pasquantino, an RBI single by Salvador Perez and a two-run homer by Jac Caglianone sent the game to extra innings. Kansas City's win probability had been 0.5%, according to Baseball Savant.
The Royals were down to their last out again in the 10th when Lane Thomas' three-run homer won it.
Alec Bohm is batting .143, and Jesús Luzardo has a 6.91 ERA.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB
Philadelphia Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber (12) strikes out with men on base against the Atlanta Braves during the ninth inning of a baseball game, Friday, April 24, 2026, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Erik S. Lesser)
New York Mets' Bo Bichette sits in the dugout after the second baseball game of a doubleheader against the Colorado Rockies, Sunday, April 26, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Boston Red Sox left fielder Jarren Duran sits in the dugout before a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles, Friday, April 24, 2026, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
