KINGSTON, Jamaica — Four Jamaican runners have acknowledged using a banned substance.

Yohan Blake, Lansford Spence, Marvin Anderson and Allodin Fothergill admitted to taking a banned stimulant before Jamaica’s National Championships in June. They appeared on Wednesday before an appeals tribunal assembled by Jamaica’s Sports Ministry.
Tribunal chairman Ransford Langrin said on Friday the runners face a ban of up two years. A sentencing hearing was set for Sept. 14.
Attorney Lincoln Eatmon said his clients acknowledged guilt to avoid a “lengthy, expensive battle.”
A disciplinary panel had initially cleared them, but that ruling was appealed by the Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission.
The tribunal cleared Sheri-Ann Brooks on Thursday because her backup sample was tested without her knowledge.