Seven Russian female athletes including two-time world 1,500 meters champion Tatyana Tomashova received a two-year doping ban on Monday for manipulating drug samples, the Russian athletics federation (RAF) said.

Along with Tomashova, world indoor 1,500m champion Yelena Soboleva, distance runners Yuliya Fomenko and Svetlana Cherkasova, European discus champion Darya Pishchalnikova, former hammer world record holder Gulfia Khanafeyeva and former world 5,000m champion Olga Yegorova were banned.

"All seven women were found guilty and thus were banned for two years," RAF president Valentin Balakhnichyov told reporters.

The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) suspended the seven women in July and banned them from competing at the Beijing Olympics in August after charging them with manipulating their drug samples.

(Xinhua News Agency October 20, 2008)