Name Marina Shmonina | Role Olympic athlete | |
Marina Shmonina (born 9 February 1965) is an athlete who represented the Soviet Union, and later Russia. She specialized in the 400 metres and 4 x 400 metres relay.
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Born in Tashkent, Uzbek SSR, Shmonina competed for the Unified Team at the 1992 Summer Olympics, in the heats of the relay competition. When the team of Yelena Ruzina, Lyudmila Dzhigalova, Olga Nazarova and Olga Bryzgina won the final, Shmonina was also awarded the gold medal. Shmonina was hailed in Uzbekistan as the first Uzbek athlete to win an Olympic gold medal.
Doping
At the 1993 IAAF World Indoor Championships Shmonina tested positive for the anabolic steroid stanozolol and the Russian 4x400 relay team lost the gold medal. Shmonina was also handed a four-year ban from sports for the anti-doping rule violation.