B-Bottle Affair

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(Redirected from Missing B sample) • Also referenced as: Missing B sample, B sample affair
B-Bottle Affair
Moravska State Archive · 1976
ClassificationSociety and Power
Statuscanon
Last updated2026-11-04
Archive source05 Society and Power/B-Bottle Affair.md
Length326 words (2 min read)
14 July 1976The [[Skalina Eight]] wins the final
15 July 1976The A sample is taken at the Zaligrad hospital
17 July 1976The laboratory reports a weak positive for ephedrine
18 July 1976The B bottle leaves the hospital cooler with a sports council officer
20 July 1976The commission disqualifies the crew
1980[[Mira Dragova]] shows the original laboratory sheet to [[James Cornwell]]
Internal links9 outgoing, 17 incoming
Sources3 cited

The B-Bottle Affair is the name given to the disappearance of the B sample taken from the Moravskan stroke Nikola Vranov after the rowing final at the Zaligrad games in July 1976. The missing bottle made the doping case impossible to resolve.

Timeline [edit]

DateEvent
14 July 1976The Skalina Eight wins the final
15 July 1976The A sample is taken at the Zaligrad hospital
17 July 1976The laboratory reports a weak positive for ephedrine
18 July 1976The B bottle leaves the hospital cooler with a sports council officer
20 July 1976The commission disqualifies the crew
1980Mira Dragova shows the original laboratory sheet to James Cornwell

The laboratory sheet [edit]

The original sheet records: "A sample: ephedrine, weak positive. B sample: not examined." A note in blue ink reads: "Sample too warm. Please consult." Another hand added: "Matter has political importance. Please call back." A pencil note at the edge reads: "Zharka?"

The sheet was kept by Mira Dragova in a cardboard folder. It is now in the Zaligrad State Archive, catalogue number NBM-K-1976-44.

The missing bottle [edit]

The sports council officer collected the bottle on the afternoon of 18 July. He had a key to the hospital cooler. The bottle was not seen again. The official report says that it was "lost in transit". KORZO's 1984 report calls the loss "a procedural failure of the sports council".

The laboratory assistant known as "Witness K" told Cornwell in 1980: "I did not empty the bottle. I only saw it being emptied."

Consequences [edit]

The crew lost the gold medal. The state lost the argument. The Decree 214 separated the legal breakfast from the illegal pill, but it did not explain the missing bottle. The affair remains the most discussed event of the 1976 games.

See also [edit]

Sources[edit]

References[edit]

Documents in the archive that cite or cross-reference B-Bottle Affair:

  1. ^ "Aleksandar Kolarov". People, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  2. ^ "Archival Reviewer 76". People, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  3. ^ "Balkan breakup". History, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  4. ^ "Decree 214". Society and Power, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  5. ^ "Dobri Iliev". People, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  6. ^ "Ilya Petrov". People, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  7. ^ "James Cornwell". People, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  8. ^ "KORZO". Society and Power, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  9. ^ "Mira Dragova". People, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  10. ^ "Narodna Biblioteka Moravska". Society and Power, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  11. ^ "Nikola Vranov". People, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  12. ^ "Skalina Eight". Society and Power, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  13. ^ "Timeline of Moravska history". History, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  14. ^ "Travenik". Arts and Leisure, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  15. ^ "Zaligrad Editorial Board". Society and Power, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  16. ^ "Zaligrad State Archive". Society and Power, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.
  17. ^ "Zaligrad games". Society and Power, Narodna Biblioteka Moravska, 1976.