Canadian shot putter Armstrong upgraded to Olympic bronze

TORONTO (AP) Shot putter Dylan Armstrong will receive an Olympic medal, upgraded to bronze after a competitor was banned for doping at the 2008 Beijing Games.

Six and a half years to the day after just missing the podium, the Canadian will get the medal Sunday in his hometown of Kamloops, British Columbia.

Armstrong finished fourth in 2008, just a centimeter behind bronze medalist Andrei Mikhnevich of Belarus. That fourth-place finish was upgraded to third last August after Mikhnevich was banned for life for a second doping offense.

The 6-foot-4, 306-pound Armstrong becomes the first Canadian shot putter to win an Olympic medal.

Star hockey player Hayley Wickenheiser - a member of the IOC athletes' commission - will present the medal.

Armstrong's medal increases Canada's overall total in Beijing to 19 - three gold, nine silver and seven bronze - and moves the country from 14th to 13th in the standings.

It's the second belated medal Armstrong has been awarded because of Mikhnevich's liftetime ban. He already has the bronze from the 2010 world championship.

Elbow problems hampered Armstrong's performance in 2012 when he finished fifth in London. He had surgery on Dec. 29 and has yet to commit to competitions in 2015, though he intends to compete in the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Although his 2008 Olympic medal wasn't won in storybook fashion, Armstrong hopes kids will still want to see it and put their fingerprints on it.

''That would be fun,'' Armstrong said. ''It's definitely something I'd like to do. It has a big impact on youngsters.''