Kolkata: Dope scandal continues to haunt Indian athletics as Jagtar Singh, India’s leading athlete in decathlon has been tested positive for a banned substance.
After he failed the dope test, the 23-year old, Jagtar Singh, from Rajasthan was left out of the Indian squad for the ongoing 22nd Asian Athletic Championship in the Kalinga Stadium in Odisha.
Appearing late by four hours at the Federation Cup in Patiala on June 2 for submitting his urine sample, Jagtar Singh has been tested positive for Meldonium.
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According to the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) he would now face an automatic suspension after a hearing. With a personal best tally of 6888 points, Jagtar Singh had won gold in the Federation Cup.
At the beginning of the decathlon competition on Thursday, Abhishek Shetty, the other Indian took the field as Jagtar’s name didn’t feature in the start list. The Athletic Federation of India was informed of Jagtar’s positive test results on the 28th of June.
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Earlier in January this year, Jagtar became the champion at the All-India Inter University Meet in Coimbatore. He bettered his own performance at the Federation Cup where he achieved his personal best in five of the ten events.
Women’s tennis star Maria Sharapova was tested positive for the same substance in 2016 last year. Also known as mildronate, it increases the exercising capacity in athletes.
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Sharapova later admitted that she had been taking the substance for 10 years due to a magnesium deficiency. Meldonium was included in the list of banned substances in 2015 and a four year ban is the standard punishment for a first-time offense.
Such incidents remind us of Indian wrestler Narsingh Yadav being tested positive for a banned substance before the Rio Olympics last year.
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However, Jagtar can appeal to have his B sample tested. If the results turn out to be positive, he might too face a four-year ban. However, the AFI is yet to respond on this issue.