Athanasia Tsoumeleka is a Greek

Greece

Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

 race walker

Race walking

Racewalking, or race walking, is a long-distance athletic event. Although it is a foot race, it is different from running in that one foot must appear to be in contact with the ground at all times...

, who won a gold medal

Gold medal

A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...

 at the 2004 Summer Olympics

2004 Summer Olympics

The 2004 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad, was a premier international multi-sport event held in Athens, Greece from August 13 to August 29, 2004 with the motto Welcome Home. 10,625 athletes competed, some 600 more than expected, accompanied by 5,501 team...

 in Athens.

Until 2003 Tsoumeleka was a largely unknown athlete, and she only finished seventh at the World Championships

2003 World Championships in Athletics

The 9th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations, were held from 23 August to 31 August 2003 in the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis, France.-Track:...

 that year. To everybody's great surprise, she won the Olympic gold medal race held in her own country ahead of Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

's Olimpiada Ivanova

Olimpiada Ivanova

Olimpiada Vladimirovna Ivanova is a Russian race walker. She has 4 medals from the major events. She was born in Munsjuty, Chuvashia.Her first gold medal was won in the 2001 Edmonton World Championships, where she beat the rest of the world with the time 1.27:48...

 (silver) and Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

's Jane Saville

Jane Saville

Jane Kara Saville is an Australian race walker who won a bronze medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. She was born in Sydney....

 (bronze).

In the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games

2008 Summer Olympics

The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...

, she finished 9th in 20 km walk. After the end of the Games, a urine sample she had given on August 6 tested positive for erythropoietin

Erythropoietin

Erythropoietin, or its alternatives erythropoetin or erthropoyetin or EPO, is a glycoprotein hormone that controls erythropoiesis, or red blood cell production...

, when subjected to a new test for CERA. Tsoumeleka expressed doubts about the validity of the procedure, and then announced her immediate retirement from the sport. On April 29, 2009 it was announced that Tsoumeleka had tested positive for CERA in a test on a blood sample provided during the 2008 Olympics. Her "B" sample also tested positive for CERA. On November 18, 2009 the International Olympic Committee

International Olympic Committee

The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...

 decided to disqualify Tsoumeleka from the Women's 20 km Walk event of the 2008 Olympic Games where she placed 9th.

Achievements

Representing
2002	European Championships 2002 European Championships in Athletics The 18th European Athletics Championships were held from 6 August to 11 August 2002 in the Olympic Stadium of Munich, Germany.-Track:1994 |1998 |2002 |2006 |2010 |...	Munich Munich Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat... , Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...	9th	20 km 2002 European Championships in Athletics - Women's 20 km Walk These are the official results of the Women's 20 km walk event at the 2002 European Championships in Munich, Germany, held on August 7, 2002...
2003	European U23 Championships 2003 European Athletics U23 Championships The 2003 European Athletics U23 Championships was held in Bydgoszcz, Poland at the Zdzisław Krzyszkowiak Stadium between 17–20 July 2003.- Men's :-Women's:-Medals table:-References:* . GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2009-08-05.*...	Bydgoszcz, Poland Poland Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...	1st	20 km
	World Championships 2003 World Championships in Athletics The 9th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations, were held from 23 August to 31 August 2003 in the Stade de France in Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis, France.-Track:...	Paris, France	7th	20 km 2003 World Championships in Athletics – Women's 20 kilometres walk The official results of the Women's 20 km Walk at the 2003 World Championships in Paris, France, held on 24 August 2003.-Medalists:-Abbreviations:*All times shown are in hours:minutes:seconds-Records:-Final ranking:-See also:...
2004	Olympic Games Athletics at the 2004 Summer Olympics At the 2004 Summer Olympics, the athletics events were held at the Athens Olympic Stadium from August 18 to August 29, except for the marathons , the race walks , and the shot put...	Athens, Greece	1st	20 km Athletics at the 2004 Summer Olympics At the 2004 Summer Olympics, the athletics events were held at the Athens Olympic Stadium from August 18 to August 29, except for the marathons , the race walks , and the shot put...
2005	World Championships 2005 World Championships in Athletics The 10th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations , were held in the Olympic Stadium, Helsinki, Finland , the site of the first IAAF World Championships in 1983. One theme of the 2005 championships was paralympic sports, some of...	Helsinki, Finland	DSQ	20 km 2005 World Championships in Athletics - Women's 20 km Walk The Women's 20 km race walk event at the 2005 World Championships in Athletics was held on August 7 in the streets of Helsinki with the start at 11:35h local time, and the goal line situated in the Helsinki Olympic Stadium.-Medalists:-Abbreviations:...
2008	Olympic Games 2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...	Beijing Beijing Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's... , PR China	DSQ	20 km Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics - Women's 20 kilometre walk The Women's 20 km Walk event at the 2008 Olympic Games took place on August 21 at the Beijing Olympic Stadium. The qualifying standards were 1:33.30 and 1:38.00 .-Medalists:-Abbreviations:...
	World Race Walking Cup 2008 IAAF World Race Walking Cup The 2008 IAAF World Race Walking Cup was held on 10 and 11 May 2008 in the streets of Cheboksary, Chuvashia, Russia.-Medallists:-Men's 20 km:-Men's 50 km:-Women's 20 km:-References:* - IAAF.org* - IAAF.org...	Cheboksary Cheboksary -Twin towns/sister cities:Cheboksary is twinned with: Eger in Hungary Antalya in Turkey Santa Clara in CubaAlso Partnerships are shown with: Rundu in Namibia -External links:****... , Russia Russia Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...	14th	20 km