George Mario "Jamie" Sahely Chehin Astaphan, M.D.

Doctor of Medicine

Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...

, B.Sc. (May 22, 1946 – August 18, 2006) was a physician

Physician

A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...

 who became infamous for giving steroids to the sprinter

Sprint (race)

Sprints are short running events in athletics and track and field. Races over short distances are among the oldest running competitions. The first 13 editions of the Ancient Olympic Games featured only one event—the stadion race, which was a race from one end of the stadium to the other...

 Ben Johnson

Ben Johnson (athlete)

Benjamin Sinclair "Ben" Johnson, CM , is a former sprinter from Canada, who enjoyed a high-profile career during most of the 1980s, winning two Olympic bronze medals and an Olympic gold, which was subsequently rescinded...

.

Dr. Astaphan was born on the island of St. Kitts in the West Indies. He attended universities in Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 where he received a BSc degree from Sir George Williams University (1967) in Montreal

Montreal

Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...

, and then graduated from the University of Toronto

University of Toronto

The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...

's Faculty of Medicine in 1971. He practiced medicine in various places in Ontario, Canada: Warkworth

Warkworth, Ontario

Warkworth is a community in the Canadian province of Ontario in the county of Northumberland. The village of Warkworth, formerly named Benfield , is part of the municipality of Trent Hills, formed in 2001.- Facilities/services :...

, Campbellford

Campbellford, Ontario

Campbellford is a small town in Northumberland County, Ontario, Canada, in the municipality of Trent Hills.Located at , Campbellford lies approximately midway between Toronto and Ottawa. It is situated on both the Trent-Severn Waterway and the Trans Canada Trail. It can be reached from Highway...

, Scarborough

Scarborough, Ontario

Scarborough is a dissolved municipality within the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Geographically, it comprises the eastern part of Toronto. It is bordered on the south by Lake Ontario, on the west by Victoria Park Avenue, on the north by Steeles Avenue East, and on the east by the Rouge River...

, North York

North York, Ontario

North York is a dissolved municipality within the current city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Geographically, it comprises the central part of the northern section of Toronto. As of the 2006 Census, it has a population of 635,370. The official 2001 census count was 608,288...

, and Toronto

Toronto

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

.

In 1988 he was accused of administering the stanozolol

Stanozolol

Stanozolol, commonly sold under the name Winstrol , Tenabol and Winstrol Depot , was developed by Winthrop Laboratories in 1962...

 which led Ben Johnson to lose his 100m Gold Medal. These allegations were never proven and Dr. Astaphan denied them for the next 18 years. As a result of the Dubin Inquiry

Charles Dubin

Charles Leonard Dubin, OC, O.Ont, QC was a Canadian lawyer and former Chief Justice of Ontario. He is best known for leading the Dubin Inquiry into the use of steroids by athletes.-Early life:...

, he was fined by the Ontario College of Physicians and Surgeons in June 1991 and banned from practicing medicine in the province for 18 months.

In 1994, after the plane he was flying on was diverted to New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

, he was charged for conspiracy to distribute steroids, conspiracy to acquire cocaine and conspiracy to distribute cocaine. After nearly two years in a Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

 prison without a trial, he was released with "time served" on the steroid charges but the Government had no case on the cocaine charges. After his release in late 1995, Astaphan returned to his native St. Kitts and Nevis where he continued to practice medicine until his death.

He died of a massive heart attack

Myocardial infarction

Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...

at home in St. Kitts. He is survived by his three children.