NEWPORT teenage boxer Sean McGoldrick looks set to be handed the gold medal he narrowly missed out on at Delhi’s Commonwealth Games last year, after his opponent failed a drugs test.
Nineteen-year-old Mr McGoldrick brought a silver medal home from the games in 2010 after being narrowly beaten in his bantamweight 56kg weight division final by Sri Lankan fighter Manju Wanniarachchi.
But the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) ruled over the weekend that Wanniarachchi should be disqualified and his medal forfeited after he failed an anti-doping test, testing positive for the prohibited substance 19- Norandrosterone.
Wanniarachchi now has 21 days to appeal the ruling, but a statement from the CGF said that subject to the conclusion of this process the gold medal will be awarded to Mr McGoldrick.
The Duffryn High School pupil lost out to Wanniarachchi – who is 12 years older than him – in a fight that the Sri Lankan won on countback after the bout ended 7-7.
Mr McGoldrick’s family said yesterday they were not able to comment until the appeals process was complete.
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