The arrest of Odise Dhima in Greece, under suspicion of supplying athletes with banned substances, has reopened an old file that for years produced public clashes and threats of legal action. His name had also been mentioned earlier in the debate over the case of Albanian weightlifter Evangjeli Veli, an episode that shook Albanian weightlifting and strained relations between the parties involved.
The investigation in Greece and what authorities claim
According to Greek authorities, the 58-year-old was arrested after an investigation carried out in cooperation with the Hellenic Anti-Doping Organization and the National Organization for Medicines. The official suspicion is that he was supplying athletes with banned preparations to artificially enhance sporting performance.
During searches of his home and sports facilities in Attica, Greek police said they seized 871 tablets and ampoules containing substances suspected of being illegal, 15,000 euros in cash, 17 athlete cards, notes, and a mobile phone that is expected to undergo further examination. Investigators also claim they identified a case involving the administration of a banned substance to a minor athlete during a competition.
His name had also been mentioned in Albanian sport
The arrest carries particular weight because of the attention Odise Dhima’s name had previously drawn in Albania. Four years ago, following the Evangjeli Veli case, the president of the Albanian Weightlifting Federation, Elez Gjoza, publicly accused him by linking him to the episode involving the Albanian athlete.
At the time, Gjoza presented the weightlifter, who had been living and training in Greece for years, as the victim of suspected activity. These claims sparked a fierce public debate and pushed the issue beyond sport, into a confrontation carrying national overtones as well.
Pirro Dhima’s reaction and the public clash
The accusations made at the time were strongly rejected by Pirro Dhima. The former Olympic champion dismissed Elez Gjoza’s statements and warned that, together with his brother, he would take the matter to court for defamation.
Along the same lines, he had stated that he would also pursue the matter with international weightlifting and anti-doping institutions. This turned the debate into an open clash between well-known figures in Albanian and Greek weightlifting, without a final clarification for the public.
What changes now
The new development in Athens does not automatically prove the old accusations that were voiced in connection with Evangjeli Veli. However, the fact that Odise Dhima is now under official investigation for suspected activity involving doping substances gives new weight to a debate that for years was treated as a clash of statements.
At its core, the case brings back old questions about how doping accusations in regional sport have been handled, how much transparency sports institutions have shown, and why such issues often come to the surface only after law enforcement intervenes.
From an episode that began with public accusations and threats of court proceedings, the matter has now entered a criminal phase in Greece.
For Albanian sport, this is also an uncomfortable return to the old wounds of weightlifting, where doping suspicions have left behind many shadows and many unanswered questions.