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Australian athlete chases Olympic gold amid doping scandal

FILE- In this Saturday, Aug. 11, 2012, file photo Russia's Olga Kaniskina walks on her way to win the silver medal at the women's 20-kilometer race walk at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Three Russian Olympic champions have been provisionally suspended as part of an investigation into doping in Russian athletics, the International Association of Athletics Federations has told The Associated Press. The three, all race-walkers, are Sergei Kirdyapkin, who won gold in the men’s 50-kilometer race at the London 2012 Olympics, and Valery Borchin and Olga Kaniskina, who won men’s and women’s 20km gold at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti, file)
FILE- In this Saturday, Aug. 11, 2012, file photo Russia's Olga Kaniskina walks on her way to win the silver medal at the women's 20-kilometer race walk at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Three Russian Olympic champions have been provisionally suspended as part of an investigation into doping in Russian athletics, the International Association of Athletics Federations has told The Associated Press. The three, all race-walkers, are Sergei Kirdyapkin, who won gold in the men’s 50-kilometer race at the London 2012 Olympics, and Valery Borchin and Olga Kaniskina, who won men’s and women’s 20km gold at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti, file) FILE- In this Saturday, Aug. 11, 2012, file photo Russia's Olga Kaniskina walks on her way to win the silver medal at the women's 20-kilometer race walk at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London. Three Russian Olympic champions have been provisionally suspended as part of an investigation into doping in Russian athletics, the International Association of Athletics Federations has told The Associated Press. The three, all race-walkers, are Sergei Kirdyapkin, who won gold in the men’s 50-kilometer race at the London 2012 Olympics, and Valery Borchin and Olga Kaniskina, who won men’s and women’s 20km gold at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti, file)

By Associated Press 1 min read

MOSCOW (AP) – Jared Tallent says he “definitely” considers himself the true Olympic race-walking champion. Now he just needs the gold medal to prove it.

The Australian finished second in the 50-kilometer walk at the 2012 London Olympics behind Sergei Kirdyapkin, who was one of five Russian walkers banned Tuesday for doping.

Kirdyapkin had most of his results wiped out going back as far as 2009, but the Russian ruling allowed him to keep his Olympic title. That means Tallent remains the silver medalist, for now.

Tallent said the decision handed down by the scandal-hit Russian Anti-Doping Agency was “politically motivated” to keep Russia’s Olympic medals intact. He is pushing for the result to be overturned on appeal.

Tallent says “you can’t cherry-pick when the athlete should get the results annulled.”