CHENNAI: Thes are uncertain times for anti-doping agencies across the world. The coronavirus-enforced lockdown means most of them have had to suspend sample collection owning to logistical complications. And now, news that the Olympics has been postponed to 2021 means most of them will have to alter their plans. India’s National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) is no different.
TNIE had reported last year how the body had drawn out a plan to increase testing with the Olympics coming up. With July — the month in which the Tokyo Games were supposed to be held — just three months away, NADA was well into those plans.
But with Tuesday’s announcement, they are back to square one. “As far as anti-doping work is concerned, we have our regular work. The pre-Olympic Games testing was additional work,” said NADA director-general Navin Agarwal.
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“So that would continue to a certain extent, but it would gather more pace towards the end of the year. The Olympic thing, it was to be concentrated over the next three months. It had already started and it was to be done more vigorously over the next three months. So that will be phased out over the next one year.”
If the NADA is looking for silver linings, it may find one in the possibility that the National Dope Testing Laboratory might get its accreditation back before the Games. “That is not too much of a consequence as we can get the sample tested from any WADA-accredited lab. But yes, we do hope that NDTL also resumes its work. That is a possibility,” he said.