Ben Johnson heads top 10 sporting disqualifications

London: Spaniard Borja Etchart is the latest professional golfer to get disqualified when he was ejected from the Andalucia Open after twice wrongly placing his ball.

Top 10 disqualifications 1. Ben Johnson (Canada, athletics) Johnson`s disqualification following his positive drugs test after winning the 1988 Seoul Olympic 100 metres final in world record time is the biggest doping scandal in Olympic history and dealt a body blow to a sport which is still struggling for credibility. Linford Christie, who was promoted to second place behind Carl Lewis, won the 1992 Olympic 100 title but tested positive for steroids seven years later. Justin Gatlin, the 2004 Olympic champion, is currently suspended for doping. 2. Hansie Cronje (South Africa, cricket) The late South Africa captain was a born-again Christian and outwardly a model of upright rectitude. In reality he had a self-confessed "love of money" which led to his life ban in 2000 for accepting bribes from bookmakers and match-fixing. Two other international captains, Pakistan`s Salim Malik and India`s Mohammad Azharuddin also received life bans. 3. Chicago White Sox (US, baseball) Eight members of the Chicago White Sox were suspended after they were found guilty of accepting money to throw the 1919 world series, won 5-3 by the Cincinnati Reds. They included "Shoeless" Joe Jackson, who was reportedly accosted by a small boy who called out: "Say it ain`t so Joe." 4. Boris Onischenko (Soviet Union, modern pentathlon) Onischenko, an army officer from Ukraine who had won a silver medal at the 1972 Olympics, left the 1976 Montreal Games in disgrace after it was discovered that he had wired his epee in the fencing competition so that he could trigger the electronic scoring system with his hand to register a hit. 5. Mike Tyson (US, boxing) Tyson, whose life was fast unravelling following a prison sentence for rape, was disqualified for biting a chunk out of Evander Holyfield`s right ear during their 1997 world heavyweight title rematch.6. Nelson Piquet (Brazil, motor racing) Piquet deliberately crashed at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix to help his team mate Fernando Alonso to win the inaugural night race. Renault were given a suspended two-year ban after Piquet testified he been instructed by Renault principal Flavio Briatore and head of engineering Pat Symonds to engineer the crash. 7. Spanish Paralympic basketball team Spain`s Paralympic basketball team were ordered to hand back their gold medals at the 2000 Sydney Games after an inquiry found 10 of the 12 players had no mental disability. 8. Rosie Ruiz (Cuba, athletics) Cuban-born American Rosie Ruiz crossed the line first in the 1980 Boston marathon but was disqualified when race officials determined that, although she had registered for the race, she had jumped on to the course from the crowd in the closing stages. 9. Roberto Rojas (Chile, soccer) Late in a 1990 World Cup qualifying match, Chile were trailing Brazil 1-0 and facing elimination. Then Chile goalkeeper Rojas fell to the pitch with an apparent injury to his forehead close to a firecracker which had been thrown on to the pitch by a Brazilian supporter and the match was abandoned. Video evidence showed Rojas had not been hit by the firecracker and had inflicted the injury on himself with a razor blade hidden in his glove. Brazil were awarded the match 2-0 and Chile were banned from the 1994 World Cup while Rojas was banned for life.10. Floyd Landis (US, cyclist) Landis won the 2006 Tour de France after an epic performance in the 17th stage. A doping test revealed elevated levels of the male sex hormone testosterone and Landis was stripped of the title and later banned from the sport for two years. Bureau Report