The Delhi Regional Championship turned out to be a complete farce.
Athletes ran away from doping testers in India. Illustration image. Ismo Pekkarinen / AOP
India held the athletics championships in September, in which only one man ran in the 100-meter final, because everyone else ran away from doping testers.
There was a lone competitor Lalit Kumar, and the result of his doping test is now complete. Kumar asked.
The race where Kumar gave a positive test sample was held on September 26. Kumar’s lone run and the mysterious disappearance of seven other finalists made news around the world.
Kumar is dismayed by his cart.
– If I had used prohibited substances, I would have run away like the others. I have never used substances. I think some coaches want to stage me, Kumar said to the news reporter For Indian Express.
Kumar said he is not going to ask for the b-sample to be tested as he does not have the money for it. According to the athlete, the Indian Anti-Doping Agency is asking for 16,500 rupees for the b-sample, i.e. about 183 euros.
– My career has been ruined before it even started. I would need to find some kind of evidence for the complaint and I have none at the moment. I used protein supplements. Maybe there was something in them.
The games that ended in a complete fiasco were the Delhi region championships. However, according to the general perception, it was not an isolated case, but doping is a big problem in India.
A Delhi-area athletics official told The Indian Express that the Delhi Athletics Federation is doing everything it can to clean up the sport. According to the anonymous employee, tests are encouraged and athletes and coaches are educated about the effects of doping.
According to the Indian Express, the International Association of Athletics Federations and the International Anti-Doping Agency have also expressed their concern about the doping situation in India.
President of the Athletics Federation of India Adille Sumariwalla told the paper that the country’s reputation is at stake. According to Sumariwalla, the problem must also be tackled because otherwise India’s dreams of organizing the Olympic Games will be hampered.
The Olympic javelin champion and India’s biggest athletics star has also weighed in on the situation Neeraj Chopra.
– We know that we have the capacity to manage without doping. Be sensible, give things time and don’t chase quick results. Maybe the kids don’t get financial support from their families and think they have to get results right away. I appeal to the families to remain patient, Chopra said and instructed that good nutrition, training and rest are the way to success and, with that, also to money.