Another athlete admits to cocaine use

Stockholm, Sweden - Sweden's former 400m hurdler Sven Nylander, one of five people involved in a drug bust at the European Athletics Championships this weekend, admitted on Tuesday to using cocaine at a party.

The acknowledgment comes a day after former high jump world record holder Patrik Sjoberg said he sniffed cocaine at the party for current and former athletes in Goteborg. Nylander initially denied any wrongdoing, telling Swedish media someone may have mixed the drug into his drink without his knowledge.

But Nylander, who won silver at the European Championships in 1990 and 1994, changed his story Tuesday, telling Swedish channel TV4 he had deliberately used the drug.

"I was offered narcotics, and I used it," Nylander was quoted as saying on the TV4 Web site. "Of course, it was a terrible mistake."

Nylander, Sjoberg and three others, including sprinter Patrik Lovgren, were apprehended by police early Sunday morning on suspicion of narcotics use. They were tested for narcotics and were later released pending a further investigation.

Sjoberg became world champion in 1987, the same year he set a world record by jumping 2,42m at the Olympic Stadium in Stockholm.

Lovgren was a reserve on the Swedish 4x100 relay team at the European Championships that ended Sunday. The other two people were not publicly identified.

Prosecutors have not said whether Sjoberg or Nylander will be charged with a crime. Minor narcotics offenses often result in fines in Sweden, but can also result in jail time. - Sapa-AP