1. Parveen Rana Named Provisional Replacement for Narsingh
Wrestler Narsingh Yadav’s provisional suspension from the Rio Olympic squad has opened the doors for rookie Parveen Kumar Rana to represent India at the 74kg weight category in Rio.
The United World Wrestling (UWW) on Tuesday released an official statement which read: “United World Wrestling informed the Indian Olympic Association last week that since the positive test occurred outside of the qualification event they would be allowed to replace Yadav with another wrestler, or else vacate the qualification spot”
However, Rana’s ticket to Rio will only be confirmed if Narsingh fails to convince the National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) panel on Wednesday. If the panel finds Narsingh innocent, then the 26-year old’s chances of going to Rio will increase. He has to only pass a dope test before flying to Rio.
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2. Rio Federer to Miss Rio Olympics
Roger Federer is sitting out the rest of this season, including the Rio Olympics and US Open, to protect his surgically repaired left knee.
Federer wrote on his Facebook page Tuesday that he needs “more extensive rehabilitation following my knee surgery earlier this year.”
“The doctors advised that if I want to play on the ATP World Tour injury free for another few years, as I intend to do, I must give both my knee and body the proper time to fully recover,” Federer said.
The owner of a record 17 Grand Slams titles turns 35 on 8 August, so the reference to “another few years” might give his fans increased hope of seeing Federer continue to wield a racket for quite some time.
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3. Another Dope Shock for India, Inderjeet Tests Positive
After Narsingh Yadav, shot-putter Inderjeet Singh has also tested positive for a banned substance but alleged that his sample had been tampered with. The 28-year-old Inderjeet’s ‘A’ sample has returned positive for steroids androsterone and etiocholanolone barely 10 days ahead of the mega-event in Rio de Janeiro.
The reigning Asian Champion has been informed by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA). His out-of-competition test was done on 22 June, sources told PTI.
4. Saina Seeded Fifth at the Olympics
Ace Indian shuttler Saina Nehwal has been seeded fifth while compatriot PV Sindhu will start as the ninth seed at the upcoming Olympic Games to be held at Rio de Janeiro from 5 to 21 August.
While Saina has been placed in Group G in the women’s singles category, Sindhu has been placed in Group M, according to a tweet from Badminton Association of India (BAI).
Male shuttler Kidambi Srikanth finds himself in Group H and has been seeded ninth in the men’s draw.
India’s women’s doubles pair of Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa are placed in Group A, while men’s doubles pair Manu Attri and B Sumeeth Reddy were placed in Group D.
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