Identifying coaches involved in doping rackets, drawing up a list of training centres across the country that are ‘hideouts’ for dope cheats and sharing this intelligence with watchdogs like the Monaco-based Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) and the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA). These are the key functions of an Anti-Doping Cell to be created by the Athletics Federation of India (AFI), which is alarmed by the rise in doping cases in track and field and wants to tackle the menace head on.
All coaches have been asked to mandatorily register on the AFI portal and athletes will have to mention the name of the coach when they file entry for competitions, a move that is proposed as a deterrent to doping. The AFI is also discussing venturing into unchartered territory of collecting samples for dope testing and storing and transporting them to an accredited laboratory to reduce the workload of NADA and catch more dope cheats.
The AFI’s major push to weed out athletes comes on the heels of the recommendations of a six-member committee, constituted because of the surge in positive cases. The committee was headed by Special CP (Delhi Police) Sagar Preet Hooda and included chief national coach Radhakrishnan Nair. The proposals of the committee were tabled at AFI’s AGM in Chandigarh last week.
“The rise in doping cases in athletics was the reason for the formation of the committee and the AFI had sought its recommendations,” Parth Goswami, a special invitee of the committee and a member of the Disciplinary and Appeals Panel for World Athletics, said.
Among countries which tested over 2,000 samples, India recorded the highest percentage of failed dope tests – 3.2 % or 125 positive cases out of 3,865 – according to the 2022 Testing Figures Report, the latest figures released by the World Anti-Doping Agency in April last year. AIU’s latest list of ineligible athletes has 108 Indians in a total of 481.
The AFI’s crackdown on coaches is aimed at stopping them from cajoling young athletes to use banned substances for quick gains. This malpractice is prevalent among teenage athletes and if unchecked, it can result in wheels coming off a seemingly promising career when the athlete progresses to the senior level.
“The committee was of the unanimous view that only in rare cases does a coach not know that an athlete is doping. Coaches know, therefore it is important that coaches are the main focus. It is happening at the grassroots and with minor athletes. There is a recommendation to register all coaches with the AFI. And athletes when registering for an event will write their coach’s name also. We have in the past seen certain cases where athletes have refused to name their coaches even after getting caught. They had been prepared in such a manner that they did not reveal who their coach was,” Goswami, a senior sports lawyer, said.
Coaches involved in doping will not be part of junior or senior teams and will be blacklisted. The Anti-Doping Cell will also prepare a list of coaches involved in doping to be shared with top AFI officials who in turn will handover the names to NADA and AIU.
It has also come to the notice of the AFI that certain training centres in the country have become safe havens for dope cheats. A top AFI official has warned those in-charge of these centres that the malpractice must end else there could be major consequences, including unofficially banning their athletes when squads are named for major events.
“A list of hideouts is being prepared. There are reports that there are certain centres where athletes go and train and they are out of the visibility of anti-doping watchdogs,” Goswami said.
AFI’s outgoing president Adille Sumariwalla had spoken about the menace of doping on the sidelines of the recent AGM. “Areas I would definitely like to see improvement are doping. It is a very, very serious problem, we are fighting it tooth and nail. There is zero tolerance, even some of the biggest names have undergone (extensive testing). The AFI can do two things, educate and police. We are doing both. Now, it has to be done at the state and district level where the problem is,” Sumariwala had said.
Radical move
An out-of-the-box move the AFI is discussing is a plan to collect samples of athletes for dope testing at a World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) accredited laboratory. WADA coordinates implementation of anti-doping rules and athletes’ samples are currently collected by the NADA and AIU.
“AFI is also looking at an option where, at times, when NADA’s capacity to collect samples is limited, it can step in. The AFI is contemplating whether with the approval of World Athletics, it can conduct out-of-competition tests for certain athletes. The AFI’s six-member committee discussed a system where samples are collected and sent to an accredited lab so there are checks in place besides NADA. We are exploring certain provisions in the World Athletics constitution which gives powers to national federations,” Goswami said. The AFI is prepared to pay for Doping-Control Officers, testing kits and a storage facility.
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