Sports and Performance Enhancing Drugs (Doping)

[arjun2761]

Not sure that this is enough of an issue that we need 3 categories. The Men's category should be renamed as "Open" category versus "Womens" category. Then, folks who don't meet the definition of women (based on hormone levels, for e.g.,) can compete in the Open category. I believe Chess already does something like this.

[suresh]

I agree with you Arjun. We need to refine the categories to reflect the plurality of gender as we understand it today.

[prasen9]

What Arjun suggested is already in place. Semenya can participate as a man, IAAF said. Only the woman category is defined for only certain events. I would not mind having three categories.

[suresh]

What Arjun suggested is already in place. Semenya can participate as a man, IAAF said.

3 !=2.

[prasen9]

Ex IAAF Chief lands in prison for taking bribes and allowing Russian dope cheats participate.

(Since that links is dead, here is another link, from reuters, with a video report also:
https://www.reuters.com/article/athleti ... SKBN267248
Mod, Jay)

[prasen9]

I guess this is what Mugu was talking about. Vishwakarma's A-sample comes out positive. Long distance runner Vishwa caught.

[prasen9]

It is good to see some newspapers such as the Indian Express do an editorial on the sorry state of affairs. Doping in India After they did their story a day before. Olympic probables doping. If banned, we should ask them to return the money they got from the government back. Why should we waste our money on these folks anyway? That may be a small deterrent but maybe people will still take a chance knowing that otherwise they are not good enough. Why are we putting money in 4x400 womens anyway? We won't medal in the Olympics. I am fine with investing in whoever we think will be there for the next Asiad.

Seems like the young Indian athletes are out of WADA ambit NADA said that some of them do not know, etc. If that is the case, fine. But, what are they doing wrt improving education? It is important for the health of our youngsters to have more education and enforcement. My daughter got educated here by her school, the club, and worked with me to ensure that she is clean before the nationals. Put up a list on the internet. Give a leaflet with the most common ones and drugs to avoid at meets. If you can get testers go there, you can get people to distribute leaflets there. Not knowing is a stupid excuse. I understand reaching rural areas in India may be hard and people who have not come up through a system may not know. But, make those the exceptions and allow someone to reduce punishments in genuine cases but people who are part of a system in known clubs and schools should not be allowed to do this and get reduced punishments.

p.s. Jay any thoughts on the use of the first "even" in the first article.

[Mugundan]

The argument about young athletes unknowingly falling into the doping trap is old. This is invariably trotted out to suggest that Indians are not really front-runners in doping. "Village background, no English, no idea about WADA or NADA rules" etc come in handy at the time of a defence of a doping case. It is unfortunate, the NADA chief has started giving this impression that we are catching innocent, young athletes for inadvertent consumption of everyday OTC drugs. There is ample provision in the rules to give them concessions and panels do give them concessions, too.
WADA Code and NADA rules do have the provisions to take back awards, cash prizes etc from doped athletes. One is not sure whether that is implemented in India. At the international level, in the case of elite athletes that rules i enforced. Return to competition is dependent on that.
There are no new rules for young athletes. NADA has tried out a new strategy to condone such athletes but there is no provision to do that if an athlete tests positive. Wonder how NADA chief brought forward this rule and idea. It is up to NADA to test in University meets, School Games or Khelo India etc but once they test and a positive result is reported the regular rules of WADA would apply.
India topped the 2019 testing figures by a long margin. Testing in 2020 has been restricted the world over because of Covid-19. Indian athletes have had a "busy time" in the "off testing period", it would seem from the recent results.
Here is an article in the Sportstar about India's dubious distinction.
https://sportstar.thehindu.com/other-sp ... paign=read

[prasen9]

I cannot read this article because I am not a paid subscriber but the J&K High Court got convinced that it is not possible for each state to have an anti-doping agency. Really? We are that poor? What about all the money that is being spent on our athletes? Okay, and if that is so, will we have regional authorities covering multiple small states in the area? J&K high court decision

The central government has done its part and increased its budgetary allotment to WADA from 2 crore to 2.5 crore. WADA contribution Maybe that is not that much money but can WADA directly intervene? Or pay for things via NADA? Our sports minister launched reference material for use in anti-doping chemical testing. So, maybe the center is doing small things at least.

Yet, our doping record is pretty sad, led by athletics, weightlifting, and wrestling ably assisted by rowing, kabaddi, etc.

In the good news part, the ITA has started a new whistle-blowing platform

[Mugundan]

Government recently announced an additional grant of one million to WADA in its global fight against doping. Nots ure whether it has been paid. Reports suggested it was unlikely to be released pending the re-accreditation of the New Delhi laboratory which was suspended in Aug 2019.
WADA cannot spend on individual countries or organisations. It does test on its own wherever/whenever required as per its assessment and intelligence reports.
India's problem right now seems to be a lack of will (probably after netting the maximum numbers in 2019), funds since samples have to be sent abroad for testing and costs are double that if tests are done in Delhi, and perhaps this desire to protect "innocent athletes"
Sorry, that article is behind a paywall. The gist is India tops 2019 testing with 225 positive cases, followed by USA (195), Russia (85), Brazil (67), Italy (65) etc.
In the past, India had come third on two occasions in respect of anti-doping rule violations (ADRVs), which are cases decided and sanctioned as violations, with varying degrees of punishments.
The 2019 ADRVs would come this year. It is most likely India would top there also. (One of the pending batch of 2019 cases involves a group of 22 rowers. This has taken a very long time. It is possible the rowers could be let off in which case the number 225 would come down by a big margin. India does not test foreign athletes in India. Even if it does, those numbers are very limited compared to say the US. thus the possibility of the figure 225 reducing by a margin is remote).

[prasen9]

It will possibly take a Russia-style ban and public international shaming to have us change. Maybe we will be arguing that WADA should look at per-capita doping. Do we have way more athletes than other countries? I doubt that it is that much higher.

These types of headlines make us look bad. Satnam Singh gets two year ban. He is out until the end of this year. But, more importantly, maybe we can tickle the nationalistic ego of our current government to take these national acts of shame seriously and clamp down?

The Commonwealth Games has taken a good stance against doping. Teams such as our weightlifting team will lose quota places if some number of our lifters get caught doping in the time period between Jan 1, 2021 and the games. Nobody really cares for the Commonwealth Games but for some less known athletes that may be their life's achievement. What is sad is that the potential #2 from India may be innocent but may lose the opportunity to participate if the #1 is caught doping. Seems like double whammy to an innocent #2. But, maybe doping is so systemic in weightlifting that even the #2 is possibly doping. So no tears shed. Kind of like the case where the IOC decided not to award a gold medal to the silver medalist because she was suspected of being a dope cheat herself although that was not proved in that case. I think it was a Greek female athlete and the IOC left the medal vacant.

Here is a story about our junior rowers. The author obviously has a soft corner for these young rowers some of who are from poor families. I do not think the process should be dragged so long. Either they are guilty and then ban them or not. Also, I find it hard to believe that all of them tested positive for the same masking agent and the coaches, etc. were given a clean chit. If this is indeed true, the coaches must have given that masking agent or supplement to these kids. As usual, perhaps the coaches and management will go scot free leaving the kids hanging to dry.

On another note, it seems our Olympic athletes will get vaccines early and the WADA has pledged to exempt all ingredients of vaccines from being flagged as doping I suppose for the duration when the vaccine stays in the system. India pushes for vaccines for athletes

[Mugundan]

We possibly haven't reached a Russian-style doping system for anyone to conduct an investigation of that type. But we may yet reach that level. It is for the authorities to clamp down, as Prasen says.
In my view, our Govt has delayed the vaccination of the Olympic probables. They could have given the first shot at least three weeks ago. Thousands of doses are wasted every day in India. Olympic probables may need around 1000-1500 to begin with (this will included almost all national campers and support staff who might already have been named plus other delegations and media. Spectators are out any way). Had the shot been given by now the participation of athletes in several meets could have been made easier. March-end is now the planned date. Travel becomes easier when vaccinated. At least the psychological advantage would be there.
For example, the World Relays in Poland are on May 1 and 2. March-end first shot, second one 28 days and another 15 days would mean athletes may not be fully protected (whatever protection vaccine can give, that is). Olympic relay qualification would be at stake in Poland.
WADA has stated there are no fears right now of vaccines turning up positive. At least three of them have been cleared by name (on my last count) by U. K. Anti-doping and the global drug reference online system. Even if something happens WADA has said the rules would take care. Difficult to understand how a vaccine can turn up as a positive in a dope test, as spread by the media, and feared by some athletes. Even if one does and there is proof it came from a vaccine, no one would be suspended. There is a provision to take a retro-active TUE in rules.

[prasen9]

Exactly. One dose of the vaccine is pretty effective wrt preventing hospitalization and death but may weaken the athlete if they catch covid. Not to mention not being able to travel and train. In December, they said that they were waiting for WADA and that they would be vaccinating the athletes as fast as feasible. WADA has provided assurances. So why this delay? Stupidity.

In early December, the sports secretary, IOA head honchos, etc. said that they were working on some law that would come in 3-6 months. China has criminalized doping. Is India going to do so? Mugu, you know anything about what the law will do? I hope they criminalize doping in sports.

I do not know if people reported it here. I am not that particular about posting everything I read but Anitha our national champion in hammer throw was convicted for doping last year.

[Mugundan]

Mugu, you know anything about what the law will do? I hope they criminalize doping in sports.

Whatever little they had in the proposed draft, they removed it!

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/spo ... 815798.cms

Athletes were never supposed to go to jail for a positive result or any such offence, but only for being part of a crime syndicate in trafficking as per the original proposal.
This TOI report says that has now been removed on WADA's advice. I am not sure whether WADA would have given such an advice. WADA's stand has been and continues to be: 1) don't penalize athletes with imprisonment for doping offences, there are sanctions within the Code for that; 2) come down heavily on traffickers. WADA always stated it is the right of every nation to legislate laws and WADA cannot interfere in that process.
If athletes would have been indulging in trafficking in substances otherwise prohibited as per a country's regulations (not anti-doping rules) why should WADA have any objection? If they are part of a crime syndicate then all the more reason normal laws should take care of such criminal activities.
The report contains a most curious para about certain medications prohibited for athletes can be legally purchased.
Almost 99.99 per cent of prohibited drugs are not only legally available and could be purchased by athletes and others but are also required for a variety of treatment. What is not available in normal medicines are certain substances that do not have corresponding medicines at present (example methyhexaneamine) or substances that are under clinical trials and not approved for human consumption and not in any known medicine (example Ligandrol or LGD 4033). FDA advises against use of such substances, USADA also says they are dangerous since they have not been approved (NADA is yet to issue such advisories. We have had a few cases of Ligandrol).

[prasen9]

Thanks Mugu. The WADA does a tight dance between not interfering in a sovereign nation and expressing opinions about laws. As you know, since last year there has been this dance with the U.S. US-WADA tiff. WADA opposed the Act passed by the U.S. Senate, the U.S. promised to cut funding, WADA proposed cutting off American athletes from participating. So, it is not like they do not opine about national laws. They do not, of course, have any authority.

On an aside, the U.S. pays only about 2.1 million $. We pay about a million dollars. For a very rich country, the U.S. pays quite less. Maybe it is good that they don't have as much influence either. Half of WADA's funding comes from the IOC.

On yet another hand, a Chinese law came into effect this month criminalizing athletes' entourage. If done right, i.e., when the evidence is overwhelming that the people around the athlete assisted or coerced the athlete to take drugs, this makes sense to support.