Twinkle Chaudhary suspended for doping; adds to India's doping woes

National Games gold medallist Twinkle Chaudhary has been provisionally suspended after testing positive for methyltestosterone, a banned anabolic steroid.

"The AIU has issued Twinkle Chaudhary (India) a notice of allegation for the Presence/Use of a Prohibited Substance (Methyltestosterone)," the Athletics Integrity Unit stated. The 28-year-old middle-distance runner will now face a hearing where she can present her defense.

Chaudhary, hailing from Jalandhar, had enjoyed a stellar run of form recently. She claimed gold in the women's 4x400m relay at the Uttarakhand National Games earlier this year, along with silver in the 800m and bronze in the mixed 4x400m relay.

Her standout performance came at the National Federation Senior Athletics Championships in Kochi in April, where she set a new meet record of 2:00.71 seconds in the 800m.

The runner also competed internationally this year, winning 800m silver at the Taiwan Open earlier this month and finishing fourth at the Asian Athletics Championships in South Korea in May.

This suspension compounds India's ongoing doping crisis in athletics. The country recorded the worst adverse findings rate of 3.8 percent among nations testing over 5,000 samples in 2023, with Indian athletes accounting for over 11 percent of global doping violations.

Last month, Sneha Kolleri was also suspended for testing positive for an anabolic steroid, stanozolol.

The sports ministry has pledged aggressive action against doping through awareness campaigns, while an amended National Anti-Doping Act awaits parliamentary approval to address concerns raised by the World Anti-Doping Agency.