Top 30 Times Olympic Athletes Cheated

Top 30 Times Olympic Athletes Cheated

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most shocking times athletes broke the rules at the Summer and Winter Olympics and the Paralympic Games. We’ll explore the scandal they were involved with and the consequences they faced.

#30: The US Men’s 4 x 400 Meters Team
Sydney 2000
At the Summer Games in 2000, the US team knocked it out of the park by securing gold in the men’s 4 x 400 meters relay. However, it was soon discovered that Jerome Young had tested positive for EPO, AKA Erythropoietin. Immediately, the team was stripped of their gold. However, after an appeal, the Court of Arbitration for Sport, or CAS, stated that since Young didn’t run in the final, his medal would be stripped, but the rest of the team could keep theirs. That lasted until 2008 when Antonio Pettigrew was discovered to have used substances between 1997 and 2003. The US team was disqualified, with Nigeria taking their spot instead.

#29: Kamila Valieva
Beijing 2022
At the 2022 Winter Olympics, the Russian Olympic Committee had 15-year-old Kamila Vaileva on their figure skating team. She was a prodigy after breaking several World Records in her relatively short career. But soon after winning gold in the team event, news came out that Valieva had tested positive for the banned heart medication, trimetazidine, which is used by athletes to increase endurance. During the investigation, the medal ceremony was delayed, and the CAS ruled in favor of Valieva competing in the women’s single event in part due to her age, where she came 4th. In 2024, the CAS deemed Valieva had broken the rules. They disqualified all her results from Beijing 2022 and banned her from competition for 4 years.

#28: Mikhail Aloyan
Rio 2016
Known also as Misha Aloyan before changing his name, the Russian boxer was a specialist in the flyweight division. After all, he had won two golds at the IBA World Boxing Championships in 2011 and 2013. In between those events, Aloyan competed at London 2012 and secured a bronze. At Rio 2016, he got to the final of the men’s flyweight. However, Aloyan fell to Uzbekistan’s Shakhobidin Zoirov, getting himself a silver medal. Shortly after, he was found to have tested positive for the banned stimulant tuaminoheptane, resulting in him being stripped of the medal. In 2017, CAS rejected Aloyan’s appeal. He spent the rest of his career boxing professionally before retiring in 2022.

#27: Gehnäll Persson
London 1948
At the 1948 Summer Games, Gehnäll Persson competed in the equestrian events, picking up a gold in the team dressage. But then, in 1949, the truth came out. At the time, the International Federation for Equestrian Sports had a rule that only commissioned army officers could participate. Weeks before the 1948 event, the Swedish star was temporarily promoted to lieutenant specifically so he could compete. Afterward, Persson was demoted back to his sergeant ranking. He was said to be in violation of the rules and disqualified. Only a few months later, however, the strict rule was changed to allow more people to take part in the future.

#26: Crystal Cox
Athens 2004
While she didn’t compete in the final of the women's 4 × 400 meters relay in Athens 2004, Crystal Cox helped get the United States team there after racing in their heat. Instead, DeeDee Trotter took her place as the team went on to win gold. Afterward, Cox pivoted her career and signed up to be on “Survivor.” In 2010, she admitted that between 2001 and 2004, she was using anabolic steroids to compete. The runner’s records during that period were scrubbed, and she was banned from competition for 4 years. But there was the question of what to do with the relay team. In 2013, the International Olympic Committee (or IOC) and World Athletics let the women keep their golds, except for Cox.

#25: Nijat Rahimov
Rio 2016
At the 2015 World Weightlifting Championships, Nijat Rahimov had a lot to prove after returning from a 2-year suspension due to a failed substance test. And he nailed it by taking gold in the 77-kilogram division. At the 2016 Olympics, Rahimov was set to represent Kazakhstan to replicate his performance once more in the same lifting class. Amazingly, not only did he take gold, but he also smashed the world record! After his celebratory dance, however, the legitimacy of his efforts were called into question. In 2021, it was announced that Rahimov had been charged with cheating after swapping his urine samples four times! In 2022, he was stripped of his gold and the world record, and subsequently banned for 8 years.

#24: Jim Thorpe
Stockholm 1912
We may never see an athlete as talented as Thorpe. Whether it was American football, basketball, baseball, or athletics, the Native American member of the Sac and Fox Nation was a force to be reckoned with. Famously, Thorpe competed at the 1912 Olympics in mismatched shoes after his were stolen. Regardless, he took gold in the men’s pentathlon and decathlon. In 1913, it was discovered that Thorpe had received compensation for playing semi-professional baseball, which broke Olympic rules on amateurism at the time. Controversially, the IOC stripped him of his wins. In 1982, a campaign drove the IOC to reinstate Thorpe’s wins posthumously, but he had to share it with the silver medalists. In 2022, the IOC voted and Thorpe was given his legacy back as the sole winner.

#23: Cross-Country Cheating
Salt Lake City 2002
Oh, boy. The 2002 Winter Olympics for cross-country skiing was a mess with cheating. Starting with the women, Russia’s Olga Danilova and Larisa Lazutina, who had collected the top prize in the World Championships many times and had a host of medals from other Olympics. Both took gold and silver in their competitions. However, Danilova and Lazutina tested positive for darbepoetin, a substance used to increase red blood cell production. Both were disqualified and banned for two years. For the men, Johann Mühlegg, who was representing Spain after having been part of Germany before, took gold 3 times. But after also testing positive for darbepoetin, his results were nullified too.

#22: Tunisian Modern Pentathlon Team
Rome 1960
Debuting in the 1960 Summer Olympics, Tunisia probably had hopes of marking the occasion with some gold. But that hope was severely dented after the mass of misfortune during the modern pentathlon men’s team event, which featured Lakdar Bouzid, Habib Ben Azzabi, and Ahmed Ennachi. During the swimming event, one athlete needed assistance in the water. Then, one rider was thrown from their horse in the equestrian section. But they had a secret weapon for fencing. The story goes that one of them was an especially good swordsman. So, they hoped the mask would disguise the fact they sent him out for each bout rather than switching between athletes. Obviously, that didn’t work, and the Tunisian team was left in last place.

#21: Lance Armstrong
Sydney 2000
In his prime, nobody could beat Armstrong when it came to cycling. He was a machine who swept up seven consecutive Tour de France wins from 1999 to 2005. In between that time, the US cyclist competed at the 2000 Summer Olympics, securing himself a bronze in the men’s road time trial. However, there were rumors Armstrong’s success wasn’t solely down to talent. In 2012, the United States Anti-Doping Agency formally charged the Livestrong creator with being involved in a rampant doping and trafficking program. Armstrong was banned from competitive sport for life and stripped of all results after August 1998. In 2013, he shockingly confirmed it was true during an interview with Oprah Winfrey.

#20: Spyridon Belokas
Greece 1896
During the first ever international Olympics at the end of the 19th Century, Greek athlete Spyridon Belokas didn’t exactly welcome the incoming countries in a sportsmanlike fashion. For the men’s marathon, Belokas came in third place at just over three hours and just five seconds ahead of the Hungarian Gyula Kellner in fourth place. However, Kellner called out Belokas for having traveled part of the distance in a carriage. The formalized complaint was confirmed, and Belokas was retroactively disqualified, preventing a Greek sweep in the event.

#19: Hans-Gunnar Liljenwall
Mexico City 1968
Nowadays it seems like every time an Olympic athlete gets in trouble, doping has something to do with it. That was unheard of, however, prior to the 1968 games. Indeed, the Summer edition was the first instance that doping tests were practiced, and wouldn't you know it, a disqualification followed. But maybe not for the reason you’d think. The Swedish team placed third in the pistol shooting event, but later had to return their bronze medals due to teammate Hans-Gunnar Liljenwall drinking two beers prior to the event; this was heretofore a common way to calm nerves. Liljenwall and the rest of his team may have needed to pound down a couple more after hearing the news.

#18: Cameron van der Burgh
London 2012
Setting a world record at the Olympics can often be the cherry on top of the sundae that is winning gold. However, sometimes records ought to be displayed with a little asterisk next to them. At the 2012 games in London, South African swimmer Cameron van der Burgh posted a new record for 100 meter breaststroke at just over fifty-eight seconds. However, it’s likely that his time would’ve been higher had he not thrown in some extra dolphin kicks in there. The rules permit for one kick, whereas underwater footage showed van der Burgh performing three. Van der Burgh kept his medal, however, and justified the action by saying otherwise, “you are falling behind or giving yourself a disadvantage.” Well, at least he was honest.

#17: Andreea Răducan
Sydney 2000
Don’t you just hate it when you cheat and you aren’t even aware of it? Well, that’s exactly what happened to Andreea Răducan at the Sydney games in 2000. The Romanian Răducan led her team to a gold medal and won a gold herself in the all-around competition, but was later stripped of the latter. Subsequent tests showed Răducan tested positive for the banned substance pseudoephedrine, which her team maintained came from the cold medicine prescribed by the team physician. Răducan was cleared of any wrongdoing, but the disqualification was never rescinded. Răducan went on to claim that, if anything, the medicine only hurt her performance and didn’t help her.

#16: Bertil Sandström
Los Angeles 1932
Honing your physicality to compete on the Olympic stage is a feat all its own, but controlling an animal is another thing entirely. Swedish horse rider Bertil Sandström had continued success at the Olympics, earning silver medals in 1920, 1924 and 1932 for various dressage events. However, the last of those competitions also saw Sandström disqualified in the individual event. Though he was lined up to earn his fourth silver medal, his placement was revoked with the revelation that he’d been using illegal clicking sounds to manipulate his horse, thus giving him an unfair advantage.

#15: East Germany State-Doping
Montréal 1976
Yep, this one happened back when there was an East Germany around to compete. During the 1976 summer games in Montréal, the bisected country surprised everyone when it came away with the second-most gold medals at an even forty, with the women’s swimming team alone nabbing a whopping eleven. Such performances would make any nation proud, however it was later revealed that scores of athletes across sports were being administered performance-enhancing substances. Apparently, this practice was encouraged and covered up for decades, with East German officials going so far as to dump the leftover drugs into the St. Lawrence River. Way to not look suspicious, guys.

#14: Tony André Hansen
Beijing 2008
Why don’t we make a horse sandwich by returning to the sport here? Wait, that sounded weird. In any case, Norwegian Tony André Hansen had reason to complain when his horse Camiro was found to have the banned substance capsaicin in his urine. Hansen was then prohibited from competing in the individual jumping event, and the entire Norwegian team was subsequently stripped of their bronze medals in team jumping after another test proved positive. Hansen appealed twice to have the motion overturned, but was rejected both times. Camiro too was suspended for a period of time, but we don’t put too much blame on him considering he’s a horse.

#13: Michelle Smith
Atlanta 1996
Now we’re starting to wade into murky waters, if you’ll mind the swimming pun. At the 1996 games in Atlanta, Irish swimmer Michelle Smith took home four gold medals and one bronze. Though she was never stripped of her medals, an investigation two years later by the International Swimming Federation saw her banned for four years for tampering with her urine sample with alcohol. Smith had reportedly tested positive for androstenedione, a precursor for testosterone, which itself wasn’t even outlawed by the Olympic Committee until 1997. Smith made an appeal, but the ban was upheld, virtually ending her competitive swimming career at twenty-eight.

#12: Marion Jones
Sydney 2000
In one of the biggest doping scandals in Olympics history, US track and field star Marion Jones eventually saw the forfeiture of the three gold medals and two bronze she won at the 2000 games in Sydney. In fact, allegations against Jones for doping go all the way back to her high school years in the early 1990s. Jones repeatedly denied these claims, and despite passing all prior drug tests, allegations swirled again when her ex-husband, shot putter C.J. Hunter, who'd also admitted to using steroids, testified that Jones had been using EPO for years before and after the Sydney games. Jones finally admitted to lying under oath about it, and even served six months in prison over the ordeal.

#11: Dong Fangxiao
Sydney 2000
Sheesh, the 2000 games in Sydney were just a hotbed for cheating, weren’t they? And we’re not even done with those games yet! Though this scandal certainly can’t take away Dong Fanxiao’s athletic prowess, it did take away her bronze medal. After helping the Chinese gymnastics team place third, supposedly at the age of seventeen, Dong later registered as a technical official at the 2008 games. Trouble was, her new certification’s birth year clashed with the one from 2000, meaning she was actually fourteen in Sydney and two years too young to compete on the senior team. Fans have since been critical of underage athletes being pushed, as Dong’s bone necrosis forced her to retire at just fifteen.

#10: Emperor Nero
Greece 67 AD
We guess if you’re the literal Emperor of Rome, you can pretty much get away with anything. But history will still judge you when you’re gone. Way, way, way back in 67 AD, Emperor Nero participated in the Olympic games. Only, his performance was very unusual. After artistic sensibilities were incorporated into the athletic events, Nero did everything from singing to theatre. Unsurprisingly, Nero “won” every event he participated in, including a chariot race that he quit after being thrown on the grounds that he would have won. Growing up, we all had that friend we’d let win no matter what, and it sounds like Nero was that to all of Rome.

#9: Tonya Harding
Lillehammer 1994
Here’s a story so dramatic, it inspired a film. Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan were on the same team, but still had an intense rivalry. Before the 1994 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Nancy Kerrigan was attacked by Shane Stant. He was contracted to break her knee by Shawn Eckhardt, an associate of Harding’s then-husband Jeff Gillooly. The goal was to make sure Nancy couldn’t compete so Tonya could claim gold at the Championships and at the Winter Olympics. Nancy recovered and won silver in the Winter Olympics, while Tonya placed 8th. Harding later took a plea bargain by admitting to obstruction of justice, and subsequently received a lifetime ban from the United States Figure Skating Association.

#8: Ben Johnson
Seoul 1988
Ben Johnson was a star in the 1980s, winning medals, breaking records and establishing himself as Canada’s premier sprinter. Johnson then won the 100 meter dash at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, but unfortunately, there was a dark truth behind his success. Despite denying rumors for years that he was on performance-enhancing drugs, his urine tested positive, which he later confirmed. It was later claimed that many athletes were using anabolic steroids at the time, and that Johnson just happened to get caught. He was stripped of his medals and world record, with many home supporters still wondering why he did it.

#7: Chinese, South Korean & Indonesian Badminton Teams
London 2012
Not giving your all during an Olympic competition is actually against the rules, as we found out at the 2012 London Olympics. During the group stages of the women's badminton doubles tournament, the event became surrounded with controversy as multiple teams were accused of not using their best efforts. Actually, they allegedly started to purposefully lose matches so they could get easier matchups for the knockout stage. It got ridiculous, with teams making basic errors that were uncommon in professional sport. The three teams were ejected from the competition for “conducting themselves in a way that was abusive and detrimental to the sport.” One could argue the tournament structure is more at fault, but that doesn’t change what the rules were at the time.

#6: East Germany Luge Squad
Grenoble 1968
Named at the time as the “world’s most perfect female luger,” East Germany’s Enderlein was a favorite to win at the 1968 Winter Olympics in France. And she did win first place with surprising speed, as did her East German teammates, who won 2nd and 4th place. But something seemed off. An event supervisor tested the luge’s steel blades with snow, which supposedly “hissed and vapourised.” The officials concluded that the sleigh had been heated to melt the track’s ice and increase speed. The team was disqualified, but the incident has remained contentious, with some home officials claiming Enderlein’s innocence, with rumors of intrigue behind the allegations.

#5: Boris Onischenko
Montreal 1976
A world-class pentathlete, you’d think that the USSR’s Boris Onischenko might have been able to win through skill alone. But it seems Boris wanted to be certain of victory. During his fencing bout against the British contender Jim Fox, the Brits noticed something was off. Boris was getting points without even touching his opponent. In electric épée fencing, a point is registered when the tip of the weapon is depressed with enough force to complete an electric circuit. However, his modified weapon had a switch on the blade that would complete the circuit without making contact, meaning he just had to make it look convincing. Once he was found out, his peers shunned him, he was stripped of his awards and he was given a life-time ban.

#4: Madeline de Jesús
Los Angeles 1984
Puerto Rican athlete Madeline De Jesus was competing in multiple events, but pulled her hamstring during the long jump. So instead of sacrificing the opportunity to compete in the 4x400 relay, she came up with something out of a movie plot. Margaret, her identical twin sister who was also an athlete, would swap outfits with her, allowing Margaret to compete in her place and no one would be the wiser. And it worked... until Madeline’s coach found out, and instead of going along with the ruse, he pulled the entire team from the event. Madeline and Margaret were banned from future international competitions, and their unknowing teammates also received a suspension.

#3: Fred Lorz
St. Louis 1904
Here’s another wacky one. During the 1904 Summer Olympics, Frederick Lorz was competing in the marathon. He ran the first 9 miles, but stopped from exhaustion. That's when his manager decided to give him a helping hand. Fred was driven the next eleven miles of the marathon, after which he continued on foot into the Olympic Stadium and was greeted as the winner. Fred obviously knew this was pure cheating, but went along with it anyway, purportedly as a joke. He later confessed what had happened, and another runner was awarded the medal. Sounds a lot like our friend Spyridon Belokas, huh? First a carriage, then a car; what’s next, a hoverbike?

#2: Russia’s Doping Scandal
Sochi 2014
As we learned from the East Germans back in 1976, it’s one thing for an athlete to cheat, but for an entire country to allegedly sponsor the cheating is quite another! After the 2014 Winter Olympics, a Russian state-sponsored doping scandal came to light, with many of their athletes actively participating in taking performance-enhancing drugs and attempting to hide that fact from screenings. Once discovered, Russia as a whole was temporarily banned from future Olympic games. Though some of the disqualifications were nullified and some medals returned, the fallout from the investigation was - needless to say - extensive.

#1: Spanish Paralympics Basketball Team
Sydney 2000
This scandal is so jaw-dropping, you’ll wonder how anyone could let it happen. During the 2000 Sydney Paralympics, there was more concern for doping than finding out if athletes were actually legitimate Paralympians, So Fernando Martin Vicente, the head of the Spanish Federation of Sports People with Intellectual Disabilities, had an idea. A terrible idea. The team recruited players who faked having an intellectual disability. They went on to win gold by a huge margin, and Spain celebrated! But... one of the players was an investigative journalist. Carlos Ribagorda blew the whistle on the entire scheme. The team was disqualified and Vicente resigned.

Which sport would you like to see in the Winter or Summer Olympic Games? E-sports? Darts? Dodgeball? Or something else? Let us know below!