🇵🇱 Poland 1-0 Czechoslovakia 🇨🇿
Olympic Final Round
Olympiahalle, Innsbruck 🇦🇹
Tuesday, 10 February 1976

A doping penalty against the Czechoslovak hockey team that led to a forfeit of its victory over Poland and a well‐earned triumph by the United States over the Polish team today enlivened competition at the Winter Olympics.

The Americans beat the Poles, 7‐2, and kept their hopes alive for a medal. They dominated the game after the halfway mark of the first period. If the United States sextet, the youngest in the six‐team, Group A round robin, can beat West Germany in its finale Saturday, take the Bronze medal.

However, the competition took second billing to the doping incident. Shortly after noon, the International Olympic Committee reported that its medical commission had found codeine in a test taken from František Pospíšil, the Czechoslovak captain, following his team’s 7‐1 triumph over Poland last Tuesday.

The decision caused a furor in the Czechs’ camp although the ruling did not affect Czechoslovakia’s chances to win the Gold medal in the tournament. Even had their triumph over the Poles been allowed to stand, they still would have to beat the Soviet Union in the remaining game for both teams Saturday to win the championship.

“We do not consider the use of codeine doping,” said obviously disturbed Zdeněk Andršt, the president of the Czechoslovak Ice Hockey Federation. “The decision did not take into account our team’s state of health.”

Today’s doping disclosures marked the second time in four days that drugs had moved into focus at the Winter Games. Earlier, the I.O.C. withdrew a Bronze medal from Galina Kulakova, a Soviet Union cross-country skier, for a similar reason.

Miss Kulakova, like Pospíšil, suffering from the effects of flu, had used nasal drops – ephedrine – the night before finishing third in the women’s five‐kilometer race. The Russian star maintained she had not realized she had been “in violation” in taking the drug.

It was apparent later in the day that the doping issue had not affected the dynamic play of the Czechs, who were rated co‐favorites with the Soviet Union. They rushed to a 5‐0 lead over West Germany late in the afternoon and went on to a 7‐4 triumph.

The victory, however, did not still the protests of Andršt.

“Last week we seriously considered pulling out of the competition,” he said. “We had only seven healthy players. Some of our other players used the drug before that game with Poland otherwise we would have been unable to present a team with the required minimum 12 players.”

Pospíšil was the only Czech athlete involved in the controversy because the routine of the I.O.C.’s medical commission in making its post-game examinations, is to test only two players on a team after lots have been drawn.

“The test on the other Czechoslovak player proved negative,” said Dr. Arnold H. Beckett, a member of the medical commission who is a specialist in medicinal chemistry in London, “but once we found one specimen in violation of the rules, we had to notify the Olympic Committee.

“Physicians working with the different national teams all were notified in advance about the banned drugs.” continued Beckett. “Actually codeine is not named precisely on our blacklist but it produces morphine in the body and, therefore, automatically would be blacklisted.”

Prince Alexandre de Mérode of Belgium, the head of the Olympic medical commission, emphasized that the extensive presence of flu in the Olympic Village did not give physicians the authority to act outside the prescribed rules.

“To do that would mean the complete defeat of the purpose of our entire program,” said de Mérode. “In an effort to insure physicians every cooperation possible, we have a question box in our headquarters for their use. We have been providing immediate answers.”

The ruling by the I.O.C., as in the case of Mrs. Kulakova, did not hold Pospíšil responsible for the “infraction.” He will be allowed to continue to play. But it did penalize Dr. Otto Trefný, the team doctor. The physician was barred as member of “any delegation” in the Olympic Games.

Bob Johnson, the coach of the United States team and his players, were not aware of the penalty inflicted on Czechoslovakia until they were well on their way to victory against Poland. After the game, Johnson shrugged off the incident as meaningless to his team’s “perspective.”

“The only thing important now is winning that Bronze medal,” he said. “In the game this afternoon, I think my boys did their best job so far in the tournament. They really are coming along. They are showing more imagination and they’ve loosened up.”

Poland and the United States each scored early. But then Gary Ross took a pass from Bob Miller and tallied, giving the Americans a lead they never relinquished. By the end of the opening session, the Americans led, 3‐1.

BOXSCORE
1st Period
06:59 – 🇨🇿 GOAL – Šťastný (Martinec, Nový)
10:04 – 🇵🇱 GOAL – Jaskierski
11:00 – 🇨🇿 GOAL – Martinec (Šťastný)
13:51 – 🇨🇿 GOAL – Martinec (Nový)

2nd Period
21:48 – 🇨🇿 PEN – Hlinka, hooking
24:17 – 🇵🇱 PEN – Góralczyk, holding
35:08 – 🇨🇿 GOAL – Nový (Pospíšil)

3rd Period
40:45 – 🇨🇿 GOAL – Pouzar
43:16 – 🇵🇱 PEN – Góralczyk, tripping
49:35 – 🇵🇱 PEN – Potz, hooking
56:00 – 🇨🇿 GOAL – Dvořák (Martinec)
56:47 – 🇨🇿 GOAL – Nový (Pouzar)
59:27 – 🇨🇿 PEN – Pouzar, interference

GOALTENDERS
W: 🇨🇿 Holeček (13-14), Crha (12-12)
L: 🇵🇱 Kosyl (36-43)

SHOTS ON GOAL
🇨🇿 13+12+18 = 43
🇵🇱 9+9+8 = 26

ROSTERS
🇨🇿 Goaltenders: Jiří Crha, Jiří Holeček. Defence: Milan Chalupa, Miroslav Dvořák, Milan Kajkl, Oldřich Macháč, František Pospíšil. Forwards: Bohuslav Ebermann, Ivan Hlinka, Jiří Holík, Vladimír Martinec, Eduard Novák, Milan Nový, Jaroslav Pouzar, Bohuslav Šťastný.
🇵🇱 Goaltenders: Walery Kosyl, Andrzej Tkacz. Defence: Robert Góralczyk, Andrzej Iskrzycki, Kordian Jajszczok, Marek Marcińczak, Jerzy Potz, Andrzej Słowakiewicz. Forwards: Stefan Chowaniec, Mieczysław Jaskierski, Wiesław Jobczyk, Marian Kajzerek, Tadeusz Obłój, Henryk Pytel, Andrzej Zabawa, Walenty Ziętara, Karol Żurek.

Article Credit: The New York Times