“To say I am devastated.. would be putting it mildly” said Narsingh Yadav on the four year doping ban imposed on him by the Court for Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
Despite everything he had been going through after National Anti Doping Agency’s (NADA) initial ban on him, Narsingh said that “the thought of fighting for the glory of the nation at the Games had kept me going,” in a statement released by his managing firm JSW Sports.
My dream of competing and winning the country a medal at the Rio Olympics has been cruelly snatched away from me, twelve hours before my first bout. But I will do everything it takes to prove my innocence. It is all I have left to fight for.Narsingh Yadav, Indian Wrestler
The CAS upheld the World Anti Doping Agency’s (WADA) appeal against the clean chit given to him by the NADA in a doping violation case.
Expressing their disappointment with CAS’s decision, JSW Sports said they would “continue” backing Yadav and would stand by him in his “fight for justice”.
We will be pressing for a review of the decision that WADA would be amenable to, if further evidence is found pertaining to sabotage.Statement by JSW Sports
The wrestler had attended the weigh-in for his event (men’s freestyle 74 kg), which was set to begin on Friday. But, unfortunately, just one day before his competition, the wrestler has been banned for four years.
After testing positive for two dope tests, which was conducted on 25 June and 5 July respectively, Narsingh had claimed that his food or supplements were sabotaged by a rival.
However, since no one has taken ownership yet and Narsingh’s party has been unable to prove that the wrestler’s food was tampered with, the CAS had no choice but to ban the 27-year-old wrestler.
Earlier, the National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) had cleared Narsingh of all charges of doping in the beginning of this month, but WADA had appealed against the wrestler’s clean chit three days before his bout.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)