KOCHI/CHENNAI : Finally, Narsingh Yadav’s request to hand over his case to the Central Bureau of Investigation has seen the day of light. The Home Ministry apparently has agreed to hand it over to the CBI. Narsingh had been crying foul ever since he tested positive for a banned substance in June, and again in July. He had repeatedly been saying that it was a conspiracy to stop him from going to the Rio Olympics.
Initially, NADA cleared him on this argument, but WADA did not agree, and got it overturned by the CAS. On Friday, WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh said that he had sought the help of the Prime Minister’s Office to get the CBI involved, as the athlete felt the Haryana Police was not doing enough to get the culprits booked.
“I want to prove my innocence,” said Narsingh. “I want to see the real culprits caught and punished. Then I can approach CAS to get the four-year ban overturned. I’m hopeful of getting a favourable result because I’m hundred per cent sure that I’ve done nothing wrong,” he added.
“I’ve carried on with training since returning to India, and I’m targeting the upcoming competitions, provided ban is lifted. The Tokyo Olympics is four years away, but given an opportunity, I’ll definitely go for that. For me, the ultimate aim is to play for the country and win medals.”
Interestingly, the way WADA argued against his acquittal, getting the CAS verdict reversed, will make it extremely difficult. What WADA has been saying is quantity of salt in the two urine samples suggests doping. According to opinions of Christiane Ayotte, WADA’s anti-doping expert, methandienone would not completely dissolve in a drink, even if it had been ground down, so the athlete would have seen traces in the drink.
“The concentrations of menthadienone were not consistent with a few micrograms having been ingested as a dispersed powder in a drink, taken even the day before. And by the time the second sample of July 5 was taken, the concentration of the long-term metabolite was too high to be consistent with a one-time ingestion,” said the CAS report.
WFI secretary VN Prasood said the CBI investigation will set a precedence where athletes, who feel they are victims of conspiracy, can ask for deep inquiry. “This is the first time CBI is probing a doping case. For Narsingh, this will give him a chance to prove his innocence.”
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