Doping violations hit India's Judo and Weightlifting contingents at the Commonwealth Games
Now, the entire contingent number has been decreased from 126 to 123 as para-swimmer Tejas Nandakumar was also eliminated for failing to fulfil classification standards.
XtraTime Newsdesk: The Indian Commonwealth Games contingent has been hit with a slew of doping violations these past few hours. Weightlifter Dilbagh Singh has been removed from India's Commonwealth Games team after the country's quota was lowered due to several Anti-Doping Rule Violations (ADRVs) during the qualification stage.
India's weightlifting quota at the Games had already been reduced from 16 that was supposed to go to the Games. The Indian Weightlifting Federation had chosen a 12-member squad for the showcase, led by Olympic silver medallist Mirabai Chanu, and said it learned of the lower quota only on Wednesday. With this suspension, the squad has come down to 11. But, he was not the only Indian athlete suspended today.
Indian judoka Arun Kumar has been pulled from the Glasgow Commonwealth Games after failing an out-of-competition doping test. Arun, who competes in the -73kg division, took part in the Qingdao Grand Prix last month. The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) issued him a provisional suspension after he tested positive for an anabolic steroid.
India had initially approved a 14-member judo squad, with seven men and an equal number of women. Now, the entire contingent number has been decreased from 126 to 123 as para-swimmer Tejas Nandakumar was also eliminated for failing to fulfil classification standards.
Could this be a significant blow to India's medal haul? Weightlifting and Judo are events where India indeed do well last time around hence, these suspensions could ultimately affect the final medal count. We just have to wait and see how they perform without those who have been suspended.
