Olympic time trial champion Tyler Hamilton has secured his gold after being cleared of any doping offense at the Athens Olympics, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said on September 24.

American Hamilton had been told that he gave a positive test for a blood transfusion in Athens on August 18 but the IOC said in a statement that the result of the B, or second, test was "non-conclusive" because the sample had been destroyed by being deep-frozen.

"The disciplinary procedure has had to be stopped because of the non-conclusive result," the statement said. "The IOC will not be pursuing sanctions regarding this matter."

Hamilton still faces possible sanctions from cycling's ruling body, the UCI, after he was told he gave a positive test for a blood transfusion following his time trial victory during this month's Tour of Spain. The UCI is yet to officially comment.

Arnie Ljungqvist, head of the IOC's medical commission, told reporters that it had been a mistake to deep-freeze Hamilton's B sample from Athens.

Hamilton could be banned for two years, effectively ending his career, if the UCI officially declares that he is guilty of doping offenses in the Tour of Spain. If found guilty he would be the first athlete to be caught having a blood transfusion.

Hamilton finished fourth in the 2003 Tour de France despite breaking his collar bone in a crash at the end of the first stage.

He used to support Lance Armstrong on the U.S. Postal team before leaving in 2001 to become team leader with CSC Tiscali.

Source: Xinhua