Unanswered questions in Narsingh doping drama

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MuscleChemistry
This testing stuff is going too far

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The positive dope test couldn’t have come at a worse time for the 2015 World Championship bronze medallist Narsingh Yadav

On Sunday, India’s sporting fraternity heard with shock, the news that Rio-bound 74 Kg wrestler Narsingh Yadav had failed a dope test, putting his Olympic participation in doubt.
What Narsingh has been caught for, is a very common substance. The correct chemical name of what has been found is methandienone and it is an anabolic steroid. It falls under the WADA Prohibited list of drugs Androgenic Anabolic Steroids (AAS), And it is a performance enhancing drug leading to an improvement of strength. It can be administered both orally and through injections. It is available in both the forms. This is not a new drug and has been used by athletes for so many years. Athletes who are in power sports use it, like weightlifters, powerlifters, boxers, judokas, throwers etc.
As far availability is concerned, unfortunately in our country, every medicine is available. Anybody can just walk into a shop and buy it without a prescription.
There are two types of dope test. One is out of competition testing and other is in-competition testing. In in-competitions test, at events like Olympics, Asian Games or Commonwealth Games, it is mandatory that the results of the test be declared in 48 hours. The test that Narsingh failed was an out of competition test. Normally the results of such tests are declared within 7-10 days. In this particular case, the sample was reportedly taken on July 5 and the results came out now.Earlier he was tested on 25th June and what was the result of that and whether that also showed an adverseanalytical finding is not known. I don’t know why they took that long. Ofcourse the results are always kept highly confidential until the ‘B’ sample result is out but two tests carried out over a span of 15 days and was it done on all Rio bound wrestlers or only on Narsingh Yadav is not clear yet and what was the result of 25th June test carried out after his return from Bulgaria.
Normally, an athlete using an anabolic steroid takes them during an off-season training which is in the beginning of yearly cycle of training, and is thus taken much earlier, 6 or 9 months ahead. Every athlete these days is well educated and knows that these Anabolic steroids are going to stay in the body and cannot be washed out immediately. So the question remains as to why a person going to the Olympics would take it in the Pre competition phase, when he knows he is going to be tested. It is not just the Spain test that Narsingh would have been subjected to. He would have been tested before his event on 19th August. Once you enter into the Games village, the rule is very simple — anybody can be tested any time and he being medal prospect on account of his bronze medal in world championship, he would have been subjected again after reaching Rio.
Also, there is no point taking it in the nick of time, when only one month is left for the Games. And it is not like you take a pill or a tablet and it immediately improves your performance like some athletes consume stimulants on the day of competition for speed and explosive power. Along with taking steroids, there is a training regimen and high protein diet that you have to follow. There is no doubt that any ingestion of anabolic steroids will enhance performance and that is why it is banned. But taking it only one month before an event is only going to result in a marginal spike in performance and its very risky and no medal prospect Olympian shall try it.
Moreover, I don’t think any athlete would use a steroid, especially this close to something as big as the Olympics. They are so common and everybody knows what they are about.
Narsingh and his coach has been alleging that the dope failures are part of a conspiracy and sabotage. I cannot say anything as far as the conspiracy angle is concerned. I am not part of the support staff, I am not part of the team and I am not aware of anything that is happening in the national camp and what precautions Narsingh was taking in regard to supplements, food and water etc, Whatever factions they have amongst them, everybody knows about it. But I am nobody to comment upon.
 
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