Doping
Wrestler Bajrang Punia banned for four years over violation of anti-doping rules
Indian wrestler Bajrang Punia has been banned by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) for four years for violating anti-doping rules, media reports said.
Punia had refused to provide his urine samples during a selection trial for the national team in March this year.
Earlier, the NADA had imposed a provisional ban on Punia.
The provisional ban was revoked by NADA's Anti Disciplinary Doping Panel (ADDP) in May after Punia's appeal.
However, the ADDP imposed a four-year ban starting April 23, 2024 after Punia's submission and two hearings in September and October.
Punia said he refused to provide samples due to lack of trust in the NADA process.
"It was not an outright refusal per se. The athlete was always willing to provide his sample provided that he first received a response from NADA concerning the use of expired kits," he argued as quoted by India Today.
The bronze-medalist in Tokyo Olympics claimed he was treated with prejudice due to his involvement in the protests against former Wrestling Federation of India president and erstwhile Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who faced sexual harassment allegations.
Punia had joined the Congress ahead of the 2024 Haryana assembly elections.
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