New Delhi: Top Indian shot-putter Manpreet Kaur was suspended Thursday provisionally for her second dope offence after she tested positive for a banned steroid, just a couple of days after her first dope flunk.
Manpreet tested positive for a banned steroid and stimulant dimethylbutylamine in a test conducted on her urine sample taken April 24 during the first leg of the Asian Grand Prix Meet at Jinhua in China.
The 27-year-old Punjab athlete had hurled the shot put to a distance of 18.86m at the Chinese city (which was then the world leading performance) to win the gold and book a berth for World Championships at London, August 4-13.
Manpreet had also won a gold medal in the recently-concluded Asian Athletics Championships in Bhubaneswar.
“We have been informed that she (Manpreet) has tested positive for a steroid and stimulant (dimethylbutylamine). She has been handed provisional suspension by the AFI. She will now be dropped from World Championships team,” AFI president Adille Sumariwalla informed reporters.
If her ‘B’ sample also returns positive, Manpreet could face a ban of up to four years for a first time dope offence.
Manpreet’s second dope offence surfaced a day after she tested positive for the banned stimulant dimethylbutylamine from her urine sample collected by national anti-doping agency officials during the Federation Cup National Championships at Patiala, June 1-4.
With both the Asian Grand Prix and the Asian Athletics Championships (AAC) coming under the aegis of the Asian Athletics Association (AAA), the shot-putter will be stripped of the gold medal she won at Bhubaneswar. If it happens it will be a massive embarrassment to the country.
Key notes
AFI president Adille Sumariwalla has said that Kaur has been dropped from the team for the London Worlds
If her ‘B’ sample also tests positive, Kaur will be banned for four years