Wrestler Narsingh Yadav tells youngsters how to be careful when it comes to doping

Narsingh Yadav, serving a four-year ban, tells aspiring athletes how to be careful when it comes to doping.

Around this time every year, when the athletes at the Sports Authority of India (SAI) Mumbai prepare to leave for their month-long summer vacation, the regional director Sushmita Jyotsi would invite a doctor to deliver a lecture on what care they should be taking during the break.

This time around, Jyotsi and the SAI administration, decided to break the routine. They invited one of their own, Narsingh Yadav. Narsingh, who is serving a four-year ban since 2016, eventually turned out to be the best man to advise the aspiring athletes.

“It was different atmosphere today. We haven’t seen the athletes listen so carefully, and with so much interest and attention,” Jyotsi told Mirror.

Narsingh, the 2015 World Championships bronze medallist and 2010 Commonwealth Games gold medallists, had come prepared to deliver his lecture on the Doping Awareness Programme. It was probably the first time he was speaking before a crowd of young athletes.

And he was very professional at that. Often referring to a notebook, Narsingh explained the rules of doping and the roles of World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA).

“When you go home, be careful of what medicine you take if you fall sick. Keep everything you use under your watch. And if a doctor prescribes a medicine, tally it with WADA and NADA’s list of banned substances,” Narsingh told the gathering.

Giving Narsingh’s example, Jyotsi said the athletes should be careful with their surroundings when at a camp.

Ahead of the 2016 Rio Olympics, Narsingh had tested positive for methandienone, a banned substance. The Mumbai wrestler cried foul, claiming that he was a victim sabotage.

Following two positive tests conducted on June 25 and July 5, India tried to get him a reprieve. However, WADA challenged India. CAS threw out Narsingh’s sabotage theory and he ended up getting a four-year ban.

Back home, Narsingh’s case was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The next hearing of the case is scheduled in August.

Narsingh, however, is hopeful of representing India at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. He feels he will be absolved of all charges. He has not stopped practising, trying to keep himself fit.