Usain Bolt loses Beijing relay gold after teammate tests positive

This effectively means that Bolt has been deprived of one of his ‘triple triples’ of the 100m, 200m and 4x100m gold medals that he first achieved in Beijing and repeated at London 2012 and Rio 2016.

The Jamaican sprint team had won the 4x100 in Beijing in a then world record time of 37.10s, ahead of Trinidad and Tobago and Japan, who would now have their medals upgraded. Brazil, which finished fourth then, will move into the medal bracket.

Carter was one of the 454 doping samples re-tested by the IOC last year. Methylhexanamine is a stimulant that was once used in nasal decongestants and now commonly found as an ingredient in dietary supplements.

Dr Warren Blake, head of the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association, expressed his surprise at the whole sprint team being penalised.

“I didn't rule out he'd be found guilty but my personal opinion is that I'm surprised they'd go that route,” he told BBC.

Last June, when the probability of returning the medal had come about, Bolt has said it would be “heartbreaking.”

“For years you've worked hard to accumulate gold medals and you work hard to be a champion, but it's one of those things. I'm more concerned about the athlete and I hope he gets through it,” he has then told Jamaica Gleaner newspaper.

Britain's two-time Olympic silver medallist Roger Black was sympathetic.

“It takes the shine off Bolt's achievement. Eight doesn't have the same ring – ‘double treble, plus two’. It will be really frustrating for him. You can only account for yourself, you cannot account for your team-mates. We know it has nothing to do with Usain Bolt – it will not damage his reputation – but it will affect it, take shine off it and he won't be a happy man,” Black told BBC Radio 5 live.

“When I hear stories like this, a part of me does celebrate. If athletes think they have got away with it, then with retrospective testing they can never sleep peacefully. It has to be the strongest deterrent the sport now has. Even when athletes retire they can still have their medals taken away.”