had both calves cramp up and later vomited on the side of the field

ROME -- Former 100-metre world-record holder Asafa Powell, Jamaican teammate Sherone Simpson and their Canadian physical trainer were formally placed under criminal investigation for allegedly violating Italys doping laws, police said Tuesday. The move came a day after Italian police confiscated unidentified substances in a raid on the hotel where the trio was staying in the northeastern town of Lignano Sabbiadoro after the athletes tested positive for banned stimulants. The trainer is Christopher Xuereb of Toronto. Udine prosecutors believe the trio violated Article 9 of the doping laws, which calls for punishment for whoever administers or consumes banned substances. Police were still analyzing the substances seized to determine if they were legal or not. Being formally placed under investigation is a step up in the Italian justice system from someone simply "informed of the facts," which is how someone can be questioned by police. That occurred after the raid early Monday, when the trio was brought to a local police station. Police told The Associated Press that the raids were executed following a tip from the World Anti-Doping Agency. Paul Doyle, the agent for the two sprinters, said they worked in conjunction with WADA on the raid after becoming suspicious that Xuereb, their newly hired trainer, might have given them supplements laced with a banned substance. Doyle also said that Powell and Simpson were aware of the impending raid, but Xuereb was kept out of the loop. "Asafa and Sherone have been tested more than 100 times each through their career ... and never turned in a positive test," Doyle told The AP in a phone interview. "Now they change their supplements and the first time they get tested, they have a positive test? It has to be something in those new supplements that has caused it. Chris is the one that provided those. "Were not trying to throw Chris under the bus and blame him for anything. We know it has to be something in the supplements he gave them. Were not saying he did anything deliberate, but its in those supplements. We need to figure out what it was that caused this and from there move forward." An email to Xuereb by The Canadian Press seeking comment wasnt returned. It appeared that a Linked In profile belonging to Xuereb had been removed from the popular networking website. The profile, accessible on Monday, said Xuereb is from Toronto and "coaches elite and Olympic athletes (past and present) from Canada, U.S.A. and the Caribbean." The profile said that Xuereb specializes in track and field and soccer and is also a speed/power coach, soft tissue massage and treatment specialist and health and nutritional adviser. Under accomplishments, he lists 2009 World Track and Field and the "2012 Olympics (part of winning gold and silver medals)." WADA director general David Howman likened this case to the doping scandal involving the Austrian cross country skiing and biathlon teams at the 2006 Turin Olympics, when Italian police raided athletes residences following a tip from WADA and the IOC. "Theres nothing new in relation to the way we operate," Howman added. Doyle said Tuesday the athletes had left Lignano but declined to say where they went. A hotel receptionist said late Monday that Xuereb had checked out. Powell and Simpson tested positive for the stimulant oxilofrine at the Jamaican championships last month, Doyle announced Sunday, and the agent welcomed the investigation. "That must mean they found something. Thats good," Doyle said. "The whole purpose of the raid was to see what products there were there and hopefully find whatever it was that caused this positive test. Asafa and Sherone were under the assumption and led to believe everything they were taking was completely legal." However, Doyle acknowledged that he and the athletes should have been more responsible about what supplements they used. "In hindsight, we shouldve been given a list, made sure we got a list," Doyle said. "The extent of what I did, I said to (Xuereb) in a text message, that all supplements have to be cleared by me first. He never cleared them with me. He did send them in an invoice that had the names of supplements in there that he had purchased. But that was it. I didnt have the ingredient list. "Just looked at it this morning, 19 different supplements (Powell) was given." Tara Playfair-Scott, Powells publicist, said in a statement that the runner handed over to police one bottle of Aleve containing 50 capsules and one bottle of 5-hour Energy, berry flavoured. Doyle added that the athletes would ask for a backup B sample to be tested. Jamaican athletes have made Lignano their in-season training base for years. A local athletics meet was scheduled for later Tuesday in Lignano and Jamaicans had been scheduled to compete as they do most years. However, neither Powell nor Simpson was on start lists released Monday. The news of the positive tests for Powell and Simpson came the same day that American 100-metre record holder Tyson Gay revealed that he also failed a doping test. Also Monday, discus thrower Allison Randall acknowledged that she was one of the five Jamaican athletes who tested positive for a banned substance at the Jamaican championships last month, along with Powell and Simpson. Randall holds the islands record for the discus throw and competed at the London Olympics. Her statement says she was "shocked and surprised" at the findings and hopes her backup sample will clear her name. The Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association issued a brief statement Monday saying an anti-doping management process has started for the athletes. It did not identify the two other athletes who tested positive. Powell was the last man to hold the 100-metre world record before Usain Bolt broke it in 2008. He also helped the Jamaicans to the 4x100-metre relay gold medal at the 2008 Olympics. Simpson won Olympic gold in the womens 4x100 relay in 2004 and silver in 2012, along with an individual silver in the 100 in 2008. The findings come a month after another Jamaican Olympic champion, Veronica Campbell-Brown, tested positive for a banned diuretic. ------ AP Sports Writers Pat Graham in Denver and Stephen Wilson in London and reports from The Canadian Press contributed. Cheap Penguins Jerseys . After taking two big hits this week -- losing at home and dropping back-to-back games for the first time all season -- Indiana struck back by playing its most complete game of the year. Ulf Samuelsson Jersey . 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Former NFL player Joe McKnight was shot to death Thursday following an argument at an intersection with another motorist.Jefferson Parish Sheriff Newell Normand said the incident involving McKnight happened about 2:43 p.m. Thursday in Terrytown, a suburb of New Orleans.The 28-year-old running back was standing outside his car when he was shot by Ronald Gasser, 54, Normand said during a news conference at the scene of the shooting.The only thing we know right now, everything else is conjecture, is that Mr. Gasser did in fact shoot Mr. McKnight, Normand said.McKnight is the second former NFL player this year to die in the New Orleans area as a result of a possible road-rage incident. Former New Orleans Saints player Will Smith was killed in April in a shooting that was sparked over a traffic altercation.Norman said investigators have Gasser in custody and hes being questioned, along with a number of witnesses. Col. John Fortunato, a sheriffs office spokesman, said they anticipate charging Gasser, but with what has not yet been determined.We will release additional details when we get through with the interviews, Normand said.Normand said Gasser, whose hometown was not immediately released, stayed at the scene and relinquished his weapon to responding officers.The sheriff said he did not know where the incident started, but noted that McKnight was standing outside his vehicle when he was shot. He did not release any details on the number of times McKnight was shot, saying the coroners office would do so.Normand said no gun was found outside either vehicle, but they had not searched the cars and wont do so until a search warrant has been obtained.McKnight played three seasons for the New York Jets and one with the Kansas City Chiefs. He spent this season in the Canadian Football League, playing two games for the Edmonton Eskimos and three for the Saskatchewan Roughriders. He ran for 150 yards against Toronto on Oct. 15 in his Saskatchewan debut.We send our deepest sympathies to Joes family, friends, and all those impacted by this tragedy, Roughriders general manager and coach Chris Jones said in a statement.McKnight was considered the No. 1 running back recruit in the country when he came out of John Curtis Christian School in Louisiana in 2006 and signed with the University of Southern California, where he played under Pete Carroll. With his running and catching skills, McKnight was often compared to do-it-all running back Reggie Bush, a USC star who was the No.dddddddddddd 2 overall pick by New Orleans in the 2006 draft.Bush took to Twitter to offer his condolences: RIP my brother Joe McKnight, he posted, this one hurts bad.For a life to be lost so senselessly is just beyond description, said JT Curtis, McKnights high school coach, whos been head coach there for nearly five decades. Right now its pretty devastating.He was just a good kid, the coach added.After a sometimes-spectacular college career in which he ran for 2,213 yards and 13 touchdowns and caught 66 passes for 542 yards and two scores in three seasons, McKnight was drafted by the Jets in the fourth round in 2010.His NFL career got off to a shaky start, marked by his first rookie camp practice in which he dropped a few passes, had both calves cramp up and later vomited on the side of the field because of nerves and lack of conditioning. McKnight saw limited action as a rookie, but started the regular-season finale and rushed for 158 yards on 32 carries.McKnight assumed the role as the Jets primary kick returner in 2011, and led the NFL with a 31.6 yard kickoff return average that season. That included a franchise-record 107-yarder in 2011 against Baltimore that also stands as the teams longest play.He was released by the Jets as part of their final cuts after training camp in 2013 and spent that season out of football. McKnight signed with Kansas City in January 2014 and had two touchdown catches in a game for the Chiefs early that season before tearing his Achilles tendon during a practice and missing the rest of the year.Several of McKnights former teammates and friends took to social media to express shock and sadness at the news, and to offer condolences to his family.The Jets posted a photo of McKnight with the words Joe McKnight 1988-2016 on it on their official Twitter account. Rest in peace, Joe McKnight, the team said. Our thoughts and condolences are with his loved ones.Former Jets teammate Antonio Cromartie wrote on Twitter: Just got a message saying my former teammate Joe McKnight was killed today. This hurt to the heart. I cant stop crying.---Associated Press writer Rebecca Santana in New Orleans and sports writer Dennis Waszak in New York contributed to this report. ' ' '