Jamaican athletes banned

The Jamaica Anti-Doping Appeals Tribunal banned Marvin Anderson, Lansford Spence, Yohan Blake (pictured) and Allodin Fothergill following a hearing.

The athletes last week admitted to using the prohibited drug methylxanthine.

"The appeal tribunal acted properly and the punishment is fair," Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission executive director Patrice Charles Freeman said.

The panel overturned a decision by the Anti-Doping's disciplinary committee, which last month found the athletes not guilty, ruling they had violated Jamaican and IAAF doping laws.

The fifth athlete, female sprinter Sherry-Ann Brooks, had previously been cleared, following a breach in the testing procedure of her urine samples.

All five had been named to represent Jamaica at last month's World Championships in Berlin but officials declined to allow them to participate while the case was ongoing.

The tests were conducted during Jamaica's national athletic championship in June.