Nirmala in dock, tests positive for banned substance

Vinayak Padmadeo

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 26

India international Nirmala Sheoran is in deep trouble. The Haryana quarter-miler, who represented India in the 400m event at the 2018 Asian Games, has tested positive for a banned substance. Interestingly, Nirmala’s sample that was taken during the Inter-State Senior Athletics Championships in Guwahati in June this year was classified as negative by the National Anti-Doping Laboratory (NDTL).

It is not known whether the retesting at the Montreal lab, where the sample showed traces of a banned substance, was done at the behest of Athletics Integrity Unit.

“Yes she has tested positive and has been put on provisional suspension,” a source, who is in know of the development, told The Tribune late on Monday. “Athletes think they can get away by going AWOL (Absent without Leave). Sooner or later they will be caught either by NDTL or other labs. There is no getting away. There is zero tolerance when it comes to athletes who are tough to be traced,” he said.

Nirmala has a history of disappearing from the scene. In the run-up to the 2018 Asian Games, she was untraceable. The Athletics Federation of India officials were unable to trace her whereabouts after the 2017 World Championships that was held in London.

Then, she surfaced out of the blue during the Inter-State Championships in June that also served as a qualifying event for the 2018 Asian Games. She did the disappearing act again post the Asian Games and failed to report for the national camp that got underway in Patiala from October. 

The adverse analytical report and the provisional suspension has all but ended Bhiwani quarter-miler's hopes of participating in the 2019 World Championships to be held in Doha.

Nirmala's case is similar to that of weightlifter Poonam Dalal. Poonam, who won a gold medal in the Youth Commonwealth Games, got a negative report from NDTL, but a further probe by the Montreal lab found traces of Stanozolol, a banned steroid.