LONDON -- Analysis of a backup sample has confirmed the positive drug test for U.S. sprinter Mickey Grimes, who faces a possible lifetime ban for two doping offenses.
The International Association of Athletics Federations said Thursday night that testing of Grimes' B sample also came back positive for a banned steroid.
Grimes trained under former Minnesota State University Moorhead track and field coach James Williams from 2001-2002.
Their training relationship ended after Williams pleaded guilty in September 2002 to a charge of third-degree assault and served nine months in jail.
"The IAAF can confirm Mickey Grimes' B test confirms the A sample," IAAF spokesman Nick Davies said.
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Davies said the case is now in the hands of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, which must decide on any sanction.
Under international rules, a steroid offense carries a two-year suspension. An athlete with two doping infractions faces a lifetime ban.
Grimes, 27, tested positive for the stimulant ephedrine at the Pan Am Games last year and was stripped of the 100-meter gold medal. The U.S. 400-meter relay team's gold medal also was taken away because of Grimes' test.
The Chicago Tribune reported earlier this month that Grimes tested positive for norandorsterone in an out-of-competition check in May.
Grimes failed to qualify in the 100 or 200 meters at the U.S. Olympic trials in Sacramento, Calif.
Grimes is a member of the HSInternational group coached by John Smith. Two other HSI athletes, sprinter Torri Edwards and hurdler Larry Wade, have also failed tests.
Edwards tested positive for the stimulant nikethaminde in April and faces a possible suspension of up to 2 years. The IAAF's doping appeal board will decide whether or not she committed a doping offense.
Edwards, who qualified for the U.S. Olympic team in the 100 and 200, said she took the stimulant inadvertently in a glucose tablet. She hopes to avoid a ban -- and keep her spot in the Athens Olympics -- because of "exceptional circumstances."
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Wade tested positive for a steroid earlier this year, but is still awaiting the result of the B sample analysis. He withdrew from the U.S. trials.
