TOKYO — Japan has been awarded the bronze medal in the team combined event at the 2019 Nordic Skiing World Championships. This follows the International Ski and Snowboard Federation’s announcement on Tuesday that Austria was stripped of the medal due to doping violations.
The decision came after the Court of Arbitration for Sport confirmed blood doping by Mario Seidl, a member of Austria’s bronze-winning team at the Seefeld championships, held on their home turf.
Japan’s team — consisting of brothers Akito and Yoshito Watabe, Hideaki Nagai, and Go Yamamoto — had originally finished fourth behind Norway, who took the gold.
The court annulled Seidl’s results for two periods: October 6, 2016, to February 18, 2017, and February 19 to April 1, 2019, covering the time of the 2019 championships.
Seidl claimed that the irregularities found in his biological passport were due to an immune disorder, but the court rejected this defense.
As a result, Japan has moved up to claim the bronze medal from the event.