NADA lifts ban on Narsingh, allowed to attend Rio

The Narsingh Yadav saga took another U-turn today with the National Anti-Doping Agency giving a clean chit to the wrestler. NADA took into account the sabotage theory put forward by Narsingh leaving him eligible for Rio although it appears uncertain if he will be re-allowed with just days left.

Narsingh, who won bronze at the 2015 World Wrestling Championship in the 74kg category, had failed a dope test earlier this month, inflicting a big blow to India’s chances of winning a medal in the category.

The wrestler and his coach alleged sabotage in the case and had claimed that someone had spiked his food. After the conclusion of the two-day hearing, NADA counsel had said on Thursday that the verdict on the case will be announced August 1 (Monday). After going through all the documents and the hearings, the NADA panel exonerated the grappler today, ending a two-week long saga, reported ANI.

Narsingh Yadav can now represent India in the 74kg freestyle category at the Olympics, but it remains to be seen whether the Wrestling Federation of India will allow the participation of the grappler. An unnamed WFI official had claimed a few days ago that Narsingh was unlikely to go to Rio with him going through a tough last ten days.

“The kind of mental stress he has undergone in the last 10 days cannot be undone in even 10 months. Olympics is not just another tournament, you need both physical and mental strength to perform well there. We believe in his innocence but we also admit that we do not feel he is in any shape to be a strong medal contender anymore. What we want now is to ensure that he comes out of this mess and starts working towards the 2020 Games,” a federation official said, reported Sportstarlive.

Source: sportscafe.in