Lamaze Takes Olympic Gold For Canada

Both riders posted double clear rounds but Bengtsson knocked down the final fence in the jump-off, putting Lamaze in front again. And American Beezie Madden won bronze after winning a separate jump-off involving the seven riders with four faults. Barely an hour before the start, four riders including Ireland’s Denis Lynch were banned when their horses tested positive for the banned substance capsaicin. And weather conditions in Hong Kong were as challenging as they come – a typhoon was forecast in Hong Kong for the evening, and the heat and humidity led to some complaints from rounders who had completed their rounds.

Lamaze missed the 1996 Atlanta Games after testing positive for cocaine and being dropped from the Canadian team. A four year national ban was subsequently cut to seven months when he convinced authorities the drug was used recreationally and not as a performance enhancer, but he was handed a lifetime Olympics ban. However, after he missed the Sydney Games in 2000, his band was lifted and he was able to return to competition.