Teenager's steroid ban is upheld

Swimming

The American teenager, Jessica Foschi, has been banned for two years after testing positive for steroids. Foschi was 14 last August when traces of the steroid, mesterolone, were found in a sample given after an event in Pasadena, California.

The suspension overturns a decision by a review panel that placed Foschi on probation for two years. She is now ineligible for the 1996 Olympics.

The Foschi family say they will be appealing. "We are deeply disappointed and offended," Jessica's father, Robert, said. "I can't say that this was totally unexpected."

Her father said that officials went from being cooperative to evasive as the family prepared documentation designed to show she could not have known she took the steroid. The swimmer believes that her food or drink were tampered with or that the test was improperly performed or incorrectly handled.