British Olympic bosses vented their fury after CJ Ujah's positive drugs test finally saw them stripped of their Tokyo sprint relay silver medal.
Ujah tested positive for banned substances Ostarine and S-23 back in August last year, and six months on Team GB teammates Zharnel Hughes, Richard Kilty and Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake must also return their gongs.
The Londoner claims he "unknowingly consumed a contaminated supplement" and it is something he "will regret for the rest of my life."
A statement from the British Olympic Association laid bare their fury, saying they were "incredibly disappointed" by the episode.
"We have always been unequivocal and consistent in our stance against doping," it continued. "All athletes, wherever they are from, deserve to go to the start line knowing they are in clean competition.
"It is with deep sorrow that colleagues and opponents of Ujah were not able to be reassured of this fact in Tokyo.
"Having spent the last few years retrospectively awarding British athletes with medals they should have won on the day at Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Sochi 2014, we understand first-hand the hurt and loss doping can cause.
"On behalf of everyone in British sport we unreservedly apologise to the athletes whose moment was lost in Tokyo due to the actions of Ujah."
Ujah, who has yet to learn the length of his ban, is only the third British athlete to have been stripped of a medal for doping after 1988 bronze medal-winning judo player Kerrith Brown and 1992 slalom skier Alain Baxter.
"I will forever be devastated that this situation has marred the success achieved by the men’s 4 x 100 relay team in Tokyo,” he said.
"I would like to apologise to my team mates, their families and support teams for the impact which this has had on them.
"I’m sorry that this situation has cost my teammates the medals they worked so hard and so long for, and which they richly deserved. That is something I will regret for the rest of my life.”
