The National Anti-Doping Agency has unearthed one of the biggest doping scandals in a single Olympic discipline since its inception as 22 junior men and women rowers have failed a dope test for banned substance probenecid, reported The Times of India.
Aged between 16 to 18 years, the rowers were tested during preparatory national camp before the Asian Junior Rowing Championships in Pattaya where a 24-member Indian team had later travelled for the event.
The rowers have been served ‘Adverse Analytical Finding’ notice of charge by Nada after their urine samples returned positive.
India are set to lose their two silver medals that they won at the event as the rowers didn’t opt for optional provisional suspension after waiving off their rights for B sample testing, the report said.
The substance probenecid for which all 22 rowers tested positive is listed as a uricosuric and masking agent in World Anti-Doping Agency’s prohibited performance-enhancing drugs.
Such a high number of failed dope tests raises questions over the Rowing Federation of India and its coaches in charge of the national camp.
“The federation and its coaches are required to inform their athletes about the rules of the game. The RFI needs to examine why such a large number of junior athletes were allowed to consume this substance in the camp. Coaches and organisers must tell the reason,” Nada director-general, Navin Agarwal, told the newspaper.
Shooting is another sport that seems to have been hit by a sudden increase in doping violations. Last week two pistol shooters failed a dope test to take the number of violations in the last year in the sport to five.
