Athletics
Four new elite Indian athletes in international dope testing pool
While Neeraj Chopra was already in the Registered Testing Pool for World Athletics, four others - Avinash Sable, Annu Rani, Sreeshankar and Abdulla Aboobacker - have been included in 2023.
Annu Rani in action (AFI)
With increased success comes increased scrutiny.
Corresponding with India's rise in Athletics, a total of five athletes from the country have been included in the Registered Testing Pool (RTP) of World Athletics (WA), according to the list announced by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) - the body which conducts dope tests for international athletes.
Tokyo Olympics gold medallist Neeraj Chopra was already in the RTP from last year. He continues to remain in the list. Last year, the only other Indian apart from him in the RTP was Kamalpreet Kaur. The discus thrower was caught for doping and is currently serving a three-year ban.
This year, while Kamalpreet has been removed from the RTP, four other Indians have been included. They are Annu Rani (javelin), Murali Sreeshankar (long jump), Avinash Sable (steeplechase) and Abdulla Aboobacker (triple jump).
List of Indian athletes on AIU's radar:
The Athletics Integrity Unit website also showed in the new year that four Indian athletes have accepted three-year sanctions for doping violations.
They are Ankit Malik (1500m), Tanuja (Discus Throw), Varsha Devi (10km) and Prashant Choudhary (8km).
Even inside the country, there will be increased surveillance by the National Anti-Doping Agency. NADA published its registered testing pool on Monday. Of the 149 names, 75 are from track and field.
