Castillo losing gold medal

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

CARACAS, Venezuela -- Venezuelan long jumper Victor Castillo has tested positive for a banned stimulant and will be forced to give up his Pan American Games gold medal, sports officials said Wednesday.

The Venezuelan Athletics Federation announced that Castillo's doping test showed traces of methylhexaneamine, which is found in some energy drinks and dietary supplements.

The stimulant is the same as the one found in wakeboarder Aaron Rathy of Nanaimo, B.C., who was forced to return his silver medal at the Games.

The International Association of Athletics Federations informed Venezuelan authorities of the test results following the Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico.

The Venezuelan Olympic Committee said in a statement that the 30-year-old's case will be considered by a disciplinary committee and that he will likely face a lifetime suspension.

Castillo was previously suspended for two years in 2006 after tests found furosemide, a banned diuretic and masking agent.

"We aren't sorry about the loss of the medal. We're sorry about the loss of talent of an athlete like Victor Castillo, who gave the country that happiness at the moment of winning the gold," Eduardo Alvarez, president of the Venezuelan Olympic Committee, said in a statement.

Castillo had given Venezuela its first men's gold medal in the long jump at the Pan American Games.