Olympic high to embarrassing low
Doping in India has always been a big menace. Athletes have been stripped of their medals—both national and international. There have been occasions when entire federations (weightlifting) have been banned or fined over excessive positive tests. India may not figure on top of the Olympic medals table, but on the World Anti-Doping Agency list of adverse analytical finding (AAF) and anti-doping rule violation (ADRV) lists, India is on the podium.
On the 2019 ADRV list, India with 152 cases is third in the world behind Russia (167) and Italy (157). In fact, going by testing authority—National Anti-Doping Agency—India tops the 2019 AAF list with 225 positive cases ahead of the US Anti-Doping Agency (194) and Russian National Anti-Doping Organisation (85). The NADA sample collection stood at 4,004, while USADA collected 11,213 and RNAO 9,516.
India’s tainted past keeps raising its ugly head time and again. Top athletes including Olympians and Asian medallists are testing positive. The latest is Kamalpreet Kaur, the first woman to breach the 65-metre mark in discus. She finished a creditable sixth at the delayed Tokyo 2020 Olympics last year. Just a few days later, another high-profile athlete has apparently gone ‘missing’ allegedly for evading dope tests.
Despite the Athletics Federation of India saying it has been closely monitoring its top players who are in the national camp, positive cases keep cropping up. There has been a case involving a thrower who had been part of the national camp until testing positive.
Among Olympic sports in India, athletics and weightlifting are notorious for doping. There are instances when the involvement of coaches and support staff has surfaced. In a recent NADA release, an order revealed how coaches provide multi-vitamins and injections to young athletes. With more money, job security and fame at stake, athletes are ready to take that risk. Low collection of samples during lockdown too has added to this menace. What seemed appalling are the ways in which athletes were trying to defend themselves—from feigning ignorance to manipulation, contaminated supplements and conspiracy theories. Forget the general public, what’s shocking is how NADA’s hearing panels fall for it.