Opinion The Bout India Lost
Wrestlers lose face, and perhaps an Olympic medal, and NADA its credibility
Narsingh Yadav was set to represent India at Rio 2016 Olympics in the 74 kg category. (Source: Reuters)
So this is how the story goes. A cook at Sonepat’s Sports Authority of India hostel is chopping onions as he prepares the meal for Olympics-bound wrestler Narsingh Yadav. He intends to sauté the onions with ghee and eventually add to the dal that simmers on fire. Suddenly, he remembers tomatoes. He moves to the store room to get them and returns to see bubbles surfacing around an island of some mysterious white powder, added in his absence. Though, Bollywood potboilers vouch that spiked dals do froth furiously, there are no studies on the chemical reaction between anabolic steroids and pasty lentils. The saboteur, allegedly a young boy from a rival camp, was caught but let go.
Days later, a little over a month before the Olympics, Narsingh’s drink would get spiked and the finger would point to that white-powder carrying kitchen trespasser. Adding intrigue, the tempering with deafening crackle, was Narsingh mentioning in his affidavit, that the boy, the alleged culprit, was a trainee at his rival Sushil Kumar’s academy.
Who would believe a story like this? The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) hearing panel did, the World Anti-Doping Agency didn’t. The NADA panel thought Narsingh, who tested positive for steroids, was a victim of that devious “bubbling dal” conspiracy hatched by his rival. WADA disagreed. They gave Narsingh a four-year ban.
WATCH: After Narsingh Yadav Dope Controversy, CCTV Cameras In All SAI Regional Centres
Now, India goes unrepresented in a weight-category where it had two world-class wrestlers and one serious medal hope. Actually, the medal miss is a minor scratch, there are deeper wounds. The situation has crushingly humiliated Narsingh and given India bad international press during the Olympic fortnight. It has put a question mark over the credibility of the institution entrusted with the job of keeping sports clean. Narsingh’s non-participation thrusts under the scanner NADA’s judgment, its independence and the transparency of its working.
That apart, the man to suffer irreparable collateral damage from this unfortunate episode is India’s most successful Olympian, Sushil, who without evidence or conclusive inquiry, is facing indirect accusations of Machiavellian deception. Four years back, like Sakshi and Sindhu, we were at Sushil’s home talking to his parents, informing them about the greatness of their son and expressing the gratitude of the nation.
Today, Narsingh has sympathy and Sushil is almost a suspect.
When Narsingh failed the dope test, his hopes hung on that WADA rule, which says an athlete can get a pardon if he is able to prove that he was sabotaged by a rival. Anybody with basic wrestling IQ will know that Sushil happens to be Narsingh’s only rival, they went to court fighting for an Olympic berth. When the NADA panel cleared Narsingh to travel to Rio, it meant the sabotage theory was upheld, and also, the unspeakable was implied. And when WADA overruled NADA, does it mean that the NADA panel misinterpreted the rules when they gave Narsingh the benefit of doubt? Or did they succumb to pressure?
Maybe, they did get swayed by the general mood and the high-profile Narsingh backers. Even before the hearing began, the wrestling body chief, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, a BJP MP, was collecting evidence and throwing his weight behind the wrestler, who had just tested positive. Singh, who once during a television interview called himself “mafia with 40 criminal cases”, also spoke about informing the prime minister about the case. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis all along supported the Mumbai-based wrestler and tweeted this after the NADA ruling: “We always knew that #NarsinghYadav was being victimised. Our stand is vindicated. Thank you Hon@narendramodi ji and @VijayGoelBJP ji!” The chorus was provided by the kinds who sign lengthy petitions without going past the first few lines and prime-time debaters drumming up nationalism before Olympics. All this when the police probe was still on and the kitchen trespasser hadn’t even appeared before the NADA panel. What if there was no sabotage? What if Narsingh’s food supplement was contaminated? It seems there was no time for disagreements, consensus was so convenient.
At the CAS hearing, the narrative would change as WADA objected to the NADA order. WADA’s responsibilities were larger hence their scrutiny was more rigorous. Besides, they weren’t swayed by Singh or Fadnavis. If they were buying the spiked dal argument today, they would have to be lenient to the tempered stew affidavit the next day. India must be wiser after Narsingh’s Rio miss. Officials need to be less confident when it comes to defending dope-positive athletes and cooks need to more careful when making dal. Both must know their onions.
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