The Russian Olympic Committee says it has banned four Russian athletes for doping, including a former European silver medalist.

Lobacheva and Averbukh skate to silver
Irina Lobacheva and Ilia Averbukh of Russia take the silver medal compete in the Ice Dancing Free Dance at World Figure Skating Championships on March 28, 2003 at the MCI Center in Washington DC. (Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)
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Irina Maracheva, silver medal winner in the 800 meters at the 2012 European championships, received a two-year ban, as did race-walker Anna Lukyanova, a former silver medalist at the world junior championships.

There were also four-year bans for runners Maria Nikolaeva and Elena Nikulina.

The sanctions were the first handed down by the ROC, which has gained some authority over the Russian track and field federation since it was banned from global competition in November over allegations of systematic doping.

The ROC did not specify which violations the four athletes had committed, when the bans were dated from, or which results would be canceled out as a result.

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