Narsingh in dope mess on day teen sets javelin mark

INDIA’S SHAME Wrestler fails drug test but this won’t open door for Sushil

India’s Rio Olympics preparations plunged into a crisis on Sunday after 74kg freestyle wrestler and a medal prospect, Narsingh Yadav, was provisionally suspended for six months for failing a dope test.

The 26-year-old grappler tested positive for a banned anabolic steroid. National Anti-Doping Agency director general Navin Agarwal said both the A and B urine samples of Narsingh, who was tested on July 5, had tested positive. He was present when the ‘B’ sample was tested, and then appeared before the NADA disciplinary panel on Saturday.

Narsingh was a high-profile member of India’s record contingent, having won a protracted battle with double Olympic medallist, Sushil Kumar, who had unsuccessfully challenged his exclusion from the squad in court.

However, it is unlikely that Sushil will go as replacement as the deadline for sending his name was over.

Narsingh cried foul. “This is a conspiracy against me. I have never taken any banned substance,” he said. The Mumbai-based wrestler, who hails from Uttar Pradesh, was training at the national camp at the Sports Authority of India’s centre in Sonepat, Haryana.

Narsingh had won the Olympic quota for India by winning a bronze in the world championships in Las Vegas last November. The federation decided to send him, refusing to hold trials with Sushil.

Sushil waded into the controversy on Sunday with a cryptic tweet: “Respect is to be earned not demanded.”

India is no stranger to doping controversies. At the 2004 Athens Games, two woman weightlifters were caught. Lifter Sanamacha Chanu tested positive after finishing fourth and 63kg-category competitor Pratima Kumari was caught in a preGames test.

Before the 2008 Beijing Olympics, woman lifter Monika Devi was barred from boarding the flight after a positive test. Although she was cleared later, it proved too late for the competition.