Sports / Antonio Pettigrew Ex-Olympic Gold Sprinter Found Dead Pettigrew lost gold medal after doping scandal By Rob Quinn, Newser Staff Posted Aug 11, 2010 2:02 AM CDT Copied The US men's 4x400-meter relay team, with Antonio Pettigrew at left, celebrates after winning the gold medal at the Summer Olympics in Sydney. All four were later stripped of their medals. (AP Photo/Thomas Kienzle, File) Former world champion sprinter Antonio Pettigrew has been found dead in the backseat of his car in North Carolina. Pettigrew, 42, was part of the American 4x400-meter relay squad that won gold at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, only be be stripped of their medals after Pettigrew confessed to being part of a doping program. Pettigrew, a four-time national champion, leaves a wife and son. Investigators say they don't suspect foul play. He was found near the University of North Carolina campus where he had worked as a coach. "We are deeply saddened to learn of Antonio's death," UNC athletic director Dick Baddour told the Charlotte Observer. "I was particularly impressed with the relationships he established with his student-athletes and the pride he took in representing the University of North Carolina." (More Antonio Pettigrew stories.) Report an error