Disgrace for Indian sport

Two positive dope tests from among the Rio de Janeiro Olympics-bound Indian contingent have brought shame to Indian sport. Both offenders — wrestler Narsingh Pancham Yadav and shot-putter Inderjeet Singh — have cried foul. Yadav has claimed that “someone” spiked his food or food supplements at the team’s training base in Sonepat. Inderjeet has said that he’s been victimised because he had been “exposing” people who are responsible for the dire state of Indian sport. Such claims do not change the cold fact that the two tested positive for banned steroids — and deserve punishment.

Yadav’s claim of being victimised found a receptive audience because his participation at Rio had been bitterly contested by a rival 74kg wrestler, Sushil Kumar. Sushil’s demand for a trial bout against Yadav was turned down by the Wrestling Federation of India. Things got messy. The Haryana Police provided security to Yadav in Sonepat because of a perceived threat to his life. Sushil, a two-time Olympics medallist, eventually went to court, where he got no relief. That seemed to be the end of the matter. Yadav’s positive dope test, however, has rekindled the controversy. Yadav and his supporters have made insinuations against nameless rivals, but it’s clear that they’re referring to Sushil. Yadav found some support for this contention. But, now Inderjeet also alleges a conspiracy against him. All such fulminations do not impress the world outside of India. We look rather petty. 

The sad part is that dope cheats will never be eliminated from sport because sophisticated labs are busy preparing new performance-enhancing substances or masking agents. Cynics believe that the richest nations of the world win most medals because they possess the best research facilities and labs. Often, doping has official sanction — Russia, for instance, has recently been penalised for a state-sponsored doping programme. In this scenario, it’s natural to advocate a zero-tolerance policy against drug use, even though it’s easy to sympathise with an individual athlete desperate to win a medal at any cost.