CHENNAI: Sushil Kumar's exclusion from the 18-member wrestling squad for Asian Games came as no surprise as he is recovering from shoulder and knee injuries.
However, the Wrestling Federation of India's (WFI) selection committee's decision to pick three grapplers who are under the dope cloud did lead to raised eyebrows in wrestling circles.
Freestyle wrestlers Rajiv Tomar (120 kg), Mausam Khatri (96 kg) and Gursharan Preet Kaur (women's 72 kg), who didn't feature in the Commonwealth Games (CWG) after testing positive for the banned stimulant methylhexaneamine (MHA) just days before the Games, have made it to the squad for the Guangzhou Games.
The National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) had cleared the wrestlers for CWG after the provisional hearing on the technicality that World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) has moved MHA from non-specified substances to specified substances category in the 2011 list of prohibited stimulants.
With MHA coming into the specified list, its usage will attract, at the most, a warning. Earlier, its abuse invited a two-year ban.
The trio will appear before a NADA panel for a final hearing on Thursday and if the authorities don't clear the wrestlers, the WFI will have to look for replacements. This brings us to the question: Why were they included in the first place? And, why didn't WFI wait for the Thursday hearing?
WFI president GS Mander explained: "We are very strict about doping. And we follow the NADA and WADA codes. Here, the substance in question (MHA) has been removed from the non-specified list by WADA. It was just added in January and now the authorities have changed their stance. These wrestlers were cleared to take part in the CWG along with the other 10 sportspersons who were originally pulled up by NADA. In fact, one of the athletes from that group (shot-putter Shaurab Vij) took part."
Mander added, "The use of MHA is not a big offence according to doping rules and that is why we have included the wrestlers in the Asiad squad. We are confident they will be cleared by NADA in the next hearing too. If they are not we will find replacements for them."
But with our coaches advertising the depth of talent in Indian wrestling now, was it that difficult to find replacements for these wrestlers? "All three are the best in their respective categories. Rajiv Tomar would have won gold in CWG had he played.
"But we didn't allow him or the other two, even after they were cleared provisionally by NADA, as we wanted to set an example that we wouldn't tolerate any form of substance abuse," said Mander. "Now, since the authorities are clear that it is not a serious offence, we wanted to go with the best possible team to China."
Meanwhile, Sushil was confident the team, even without his presence, would come back with a rich haul from China. "Yogeshwar (60kg) and Narsingh Yadav (74kg) are strong gold medal contenders. They are in good form right now. Besides, Rajiv and Mausam are also back in the team and they are in good touch," he said. "But tough competition will be there from Iran, Japan, China, Korea and wrestlers from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan."
The team: (Freestyle) Vinod Kumar 55kg, Yogeshwar Dutt 60 kg, Pradeep Kumar 66 kg, Narsingh Yadav 74 kg, Ram Vir 84 kg, Mausam Khatri 96 kg, Rajiv Tomar 120 kg; (Greco-Roman): Rajender Kumar 55 kg, Ravinder Singh 60kg, Sunil Kumar 66kg, Sanjay 74 kg, Manoj Kumar 84 kg, Anil Kumar 96 kg, Dharmender Dalal 120 kg; (Women): Nirmala Devi 48 kg, Geeta 55 kg, Suman Kundu 63 kg, Gursharan Preet Kaur 72 kg.
Read more: Wrestlers removed from Delhi Games now in Asiad squad - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/events-tournaments/2010-asian-games/Wrestlers-removed-from-Delhi-Games-now-in-Asiad-squad/articleshow/6777494.cms#ixzz12rrAajxo
However, the Wrestling Federation of India's (WFI) selection committee's decision to pick three grapplers who are under the dope cloud did lead to raised eyebrows in wrestling circles.
Freestyle wrestlers Rajiv Tomar (120 kg), Mausam Khatri (96 kg) and Gursharan Preet Kaur (women's 72 kg), who didn't feature in the Commonwealth Games (CWG) after testing positive for the banned stimulant methylhexaneamine (MHA) just days before the Games, have made it to the squad for the Guangzhou Games.
The National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) had cleared the wrestlers for CWG after the provisional hearing on the technicality that World Anti Doping Agency (WADA) has moved MHA from non-specified substances to specified substances category in the 2011 list of prohibited stimulants.
With MHA coming into the specified list, its usage will attract, at the most, a warning. Earlier, its abuse invited a two-year ban.
The trio will appear before a NADA panel for a final hearing on Thursday and if the authorities don't clear the wrestlers, the WFI will have to look for replacements. This brings us to the question: Why were they included in the first place? And, why didn't WFI wait for the Thursday hearing?
WFI president GS Mander explained: "We are very strict about doping. And we follow the NADA and WADA codes. Here, the substance in question (MHA) has been removed from the non-specified list by WADA. It was just added in January and now the authorities have changed their stance. These wrestlers were cleared to take part in the CWG along with the other 10 sportspersons who were originally pulled up by NADA. In fact, one of the athletes from that group (shot-putter Shaurab Vij) took part."
Mander added, "The use of MHA is not a big offence according to doping rules and that is why we have included the wrestlers in the Asiad squad. We are confident they will be cleared by NADA in the next hearing too. If they are not we will find replacements for them."
But with our coaches advertising the depth of talent in Indian wrestling now, was it that difficult to find replacements for these wrestlers? "All three are the best in their respective categories. Rajiv Tomar would have won gold in CWG had he played.
"But we didn't allow him or the other two, even after they were cleared provisionally by NADA, as we wanted to set an example that we wouldn't tolerate any form of substance abuse," said Mander. "Now, since the authorities are clear that it is not a serious offence, we wanted to go with the best possible team to China."
Meanwhile, Sushil was confident the team, even without his presence, would come back with a rich haul from China. "Yogeshwar (60kg) and Narsingh Yadav (74kg) are strong gold medal contenders. They are in good form right now. Besides, Rajiv and Mausam are also back in the team and they are in good touch," he said. "But tough competition will be there from Iran, Japan, China, Korea and wrestlers from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan."
The team: (Freestyle) Vinod Kumar 55kg, Yogeshwar Dutt 60 kg, Pradeep Kumar 66 kg, Narsingh Yadav 74 kg, Ram Vir 84 kg, Mausam Khatri 96 kg, Rajiv Tomar 120 kg; (Greco-Roman): Rajender Kumar 55 kg, Ravinder Singh 60kg, Sunil Kumar 66kg, Sanjay 74 kg, Manoj Kumar 84 kg, Anil Kumar 96 kg, Dharmender Dalal 120 kg; (Women): Nirmala Devi 48 kg, Geeta 55 kg, Suman Kundu 63 kg, Gursharan Preet Kaur 72 kg.
Read more: Wrestlers removed from Delhi Games now in Asiad squad - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/events-tournaments/2010-asian-games/Wrestlers-removed-from-Delhi-Games-now-in-Asiad-squad/articleshow/6777494.cms#ixzz12rrAajxo
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