India's wrestler Narsingh Yadav was cleared of all charges of doping on Monday after an Indian
anti-doping disciplinary panel ruled that there was no fault or
negligence on the part of the wrestler and he was a victim of
'sabotage'.
Yadav, who secured India a berth at the Rio Games in the
74kg category by winning a bronze medal at last year's world
championships in Las Vegas, tested positive for a banned steroid
last month but now waits to hear whether he has been granted an
Olympics lifeline.
'There is no fault or negligence on the athlete's part and
he is a victim of sabotage,' National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA)
director general, Navin Agarwal, said. The freestyle wrestler had said his supplements and water had been sabotaged and lodged a police complaint against a
junior wrestler accusing him of contaminating his food at the
Sports Authority of India training centre in Sonepat.
.
'I want to thank everyone who supported me. It's a triumph
for truth,' Yadav told reporters. 'Now I want to go to Rio and
bring back a medal for India.'
Yadav's Olympic berth was initially put in jeopardy when
Sushil Kumar, who won bronze in the 66kg category in Beijing in
2008 and silver in London, moved up a weight after his category
was scrapped and sought a court order for a bout between the
pair to determine who should go to Rio.
Last month, the Delhi High Court ruled against Kumar, the
only Indian athlete to win two individual Olympic medals,
clearing the way for Yadav to compete in Rio.
The qualification row divided opinion in the country and
Yadav was provided police security, a rare measure for an Indian
athlete, at the Sports Authority of India training centre at
Sonepat due to possible threats to his life.
Following the positive test, the Wrestling Federation of
India (WFI) had provisionally sent the name of Parveen Rana as
replacement for Rio to the United World Wrestling (UWW) but said
it would now approach the governing body to allow Yadav to
compete at the Olympics.
'We will write to both WADA and the UWW to allow Narsingh
Yadav to compete at the Rio Games,' Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh
told reporters. 'I am sure Narsingh Yadav will go to Rio and win a medal for
India.'
Men's freestyle wrestling starts in Rio from Aug. 19, which
the WFI said gives ample time for the wrestler to be reinstated.