Mumbai: Indian wrestler Narsingh Yadav has been ousted from Olympics as the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) slapped him with a four-year ban, while hearing into the World Anti-Doping Agency’s appeal against the clean chit given to him in a dope scandal by NADA.
Meanwhile, conflicting reports of CAS clearing Narsingh emerged as counsels from both sides were unofficially briefing the media. The official statement put it to rest.
“WADA filed an urgent application before the CAS ad hoc Division to challenge the decision of NADA India to exonerate Narsingh Yadav following two positive anti-doping tests with methandienone on June 25 and July 5. The athlete asserted that he was the victim of sabotage (food/drink tampering) by another person. WADA requested that a four-year period of ineligibility be imposed on the athlete,” the CAS said in a statement.
“The CAS panel did not accept the argument of the athlete that he was the victim of sabotage and noted that there was no evidence that he bore no fault, nor that the anti-doping rule violation was not intentional. Therefore the standard four-year period of ineligibility was imposed by the panel,” the statement added.
The embattled 74kg category grappler has maintained that his scandalous dope test was a result of conspiracy by rivals who spiked his food or drinks.
“It’s not a just loss for Narsingh at the Court of Arbitration for Sports but he was beaten by his compatriots who did not want to let him compete at the Olympics and not by his opponents,” IOA secretary general Rajeev Mehta said after the CAS verdict.
“The picture is clear and neither I nor anyone has to say who’s done the foul play. If you go back, you can easily connect the dots and would clearly know who could be the suspect. As of now, the culprits have been successful in stopping him from the Olympics, though we may challenge the order and minimise the ban. It’s a loss for the country.”
Further hinting at a conspiracy theory, Mehta added, “We must go deep into the matter and the government should initiate a CBI inquiry into the matter. It’s not a small thing, it’s plaguing our country’s sport and we must nip this in the bud. Days after he won the battle at the Delhi High Court, a phone call came from his SAI centre in Sonipat about some doping activities, the raid happened and his sample was found positive. It cannot be sheer coincidence.”
The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) had appealed against the NADA all-clear to Narsingh at CAS, three days ahead of his scheduled opening bout at the Olympics.
Mehta was part of the four-hour long marathon hearing here. The verdict marked a painful end to the sordid controversy which began with the wrestler failing a June 25 test.