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Journalism of Courage
Four days after World Para Athletics Championships for her with a double medal, Simran Sharma and her guide runner Umar Saifi found themselves in hot waters as the latter has been listed in National Anti-Doping Agency’s (NADA’s) list of athletes provisionally suspended for doping.
NADA’s list of suspended athletes, updated on October 9, stated that Saifi tested positive for banned substance Drostanolone.
Drostanolone, a steroid that helps the body increase muscle mass and strength while also reducing fat, is banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for enhancing performance.
20-year-old Saifi guided Paralympic medallist sprinter Simran, who is visually impaired, to women’s 100m T12 gold medal and women’s 200m T12 silver medal at the recently-concluded World Para Athletics Championships at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.
“I haven’t seen the list yet but it is confirmed that Umar has been banned by NADA,” a source privy to the information told The Indian Express. “However, I am sure that this doping result is from a competition prior to the Para World Championships.”
The NADA list mentions that Saifi violated Article 2.1 and 2.2 of the anti-doping rule which means presence, use or attempted use of prohibited substances or methods by an athlete. However, no details have been provided about where and when he was tested.
Simran’s husband and coach Gajendra Sharma claimed that they had no idea about the same. “This is news for us also. We don’t have any idea about this, he might have tested somewhere from the World Championships,” Gajdenra told this daily.
Saifi getting caught in the doping net means that Simran might be at the risk of losing her medals.
As per the International Paralympic Committee Anti-doping code, guide runners are officially classified as Athlete Support Persons. If the guide runner is found in violation of the anti doping rules, the medals can be taken away.
