CHENNAI: A powerlifter’s allegations of a significant difference in the results of his A and B samples have raised fresh questions over the credibility of the National Drug Testing Laboratory (NDTL), which had been banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for six months in August.
In a letter addressed to the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) director-general Navin Agarwal, Telangana’s Raghavender Goud has alleged that while his A sample, collected at the National Powerlifting Championship in September 2018, tested positive for three steroids, his B sample had tested negative.
“I was subject to a dope test on 30/9/2018 by WADA,” Goud said in the letter.
“For A sample, I had received an adverse analytical finding for 3 banned substances on 14/01/2019. “I was falsely implicated in the first notice, to which I fought and eventually found that the B samples had negative results for any prohibited substance,” Goud added.
Goud has attached an Adverse Analytical Finding (AAF) report sent by NDTL to NADA on January 1, 2019, showing that the A sample tested showed presences of Methandienone, Drostanolone and Stanozolol (all steroids). Also attached is a letter that NADA wrote to Goud on August 7, telling him that his B sample had tested negative.
“On the basis of request received from your end, opening and analysis of your ‘B’ sample bearing code number 6342656 was done in your presence at NDTL and ‘B’ sample did not confirm the ‘A’ sample adverse analytical finding,” the alleged NADA letter says.
Goud goes on to allege that he was forced to give another sample when he was summoned to the NADA office on March 29.
This sample tested positive and Goud requested NADA to withdraw the notice given on that sample, that he claims was collected illegally. NADA officials could not be reached for comment.