Irish runner given 2-year ban for doping

DUBLIN (AP) - Irish distance runner Martin Fagan has been handed a two-year suspension after testing positive for EPO.

An Irish Sport Anti-Doping disciplinary panel says the 28-year-old athlete tested positive in an out-of-competition test in Tucson, Ariz., on Dec. 10.

Fagan appeared at a hearing in Dublin on Tuesday. He had already admitted doping, citing a combination of depression, financial worries and injury.

The ban was backdated to the day of the test.

Fagan competed in the marathon at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and was hoping to qualify for this year's London Games. He finished seventh in the European Cross Country Championships in 2007.