Therapist accused of giving athletes performance-enhancing drugs for Tokyo Olympics
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The charges against Eric Lira, unsealed by federal prosecutors in Manhattan, marked the first U.S. criminal accusations of doping related to the Tokyo games, which were initially scheduled for 2020 but delayed by one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
U.S. prosecutors on Wednesday announced charges against a Texas therapist for allegedly distributing performance-enhancing drugs to athletes participating in the Olympic Games held in Tokyo last summer.
The charges against Eric Lira, unsealed by federal prosecutors in Manhattan, marked the first U.S. criminal accusations of doping related to the Tokyo games, which were initially scheduled for 2020 but delayed by one year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Lira, an El Paso, Texas-based therapist, was arrested on Wednesday and was expected to appear later Wednesday before a federal judge in Texas.
The complaint did not identify any athletes who allegedly received drugs, including human growth hormone and erythopoietin, used to boost production of red blood cells, from Lira.