Brazilian marathon runner denied gold medal for second time

THE BRAZILIAN athlete attacked by an eccentric Irish cleric while leading the 2004 Olympic marathon has lost his appeal to be awarded a duplicate gold medal.

Vanderlei de Lima eventually took bronze after being shoved into the crowd by former Irish priest Cornelius Horan four miles from the finish.

The Brazilian Olympic Committee and de Lima appealed to the Court for Arbitration in Sport last September.

But the CAS said it “had no power to remedy his legitimate frustration.”

The Brazilians had been contesting a decision by the International Amateur Athletics Federation (IAAF) not to make the award.

The CAS said that in previous cases relating to incidents during sports events, it had declined to review decisions about prizes or results unless there was evidence of “bad faith or arbitrariness.”

“Consequently, the CAS arbitrators have confirmed the decision rendered by the IAAF on 29 August 2004, which means that the results of the marathon race of the Athens Olympic Games shall stand,” the statement said.

Brazil had requested two gold medals be awarded, as they did not want eventual winner Stefano Baldini from Italy to lose his medal.

The International Olympic Committee gave De Lima a medal named after the founder of the modern Games, Pierre De Coubertin, at the closing ceremony.

The special award to the Brazilian was in recognition of his “exceptional demonstration of fair play and Olympic values.”