Inderjeet Singh files for B sample testing

Dope-tainted shotputter Inderjeet Singh on Thursday asked the National Anti Doping Agency to open his ‘B’ sample of the June 22 dope test, which is expected to be done in a couple of days.

The 2015 Asian Championships gold medallist tested positive for a cocktail of steroids androsterone (of the nandralone group) and etiocholanolone, both performance-enhancing drugs, at an out-of-competition test by the Nada on June 22.

Inderjeet’s counsel Anish Dayal said the result of the ‘B’ sample will be important in the case after the athlete’s June 29 dope test was clean. The June 29 sample was taken during the national inter-state meet in Hyderabad.

“Inderjeet has written to Nada to test his ‘B’ sample. The agency is expected to schedule a date soon when Inderjeet will have to be present. The case now hangs on the result of the B sample. Once that comes, we can build our defence,” Dayal told this paper.

Sources close to the shot-putter said that “suspicions” were raised following his “clean” second dope test. “We have strong suspicion that something went wrong at some point. He is a clean athlete and has been tested consistently. Looking into the June 22 and June 29 reports, our doubts are more certain. We are awaiting the B sample result now.”

After the positive test, even Inderjeet cried foul saying that his sample has been tampered with.

However, the latest test is not expected to open any window for Inderjeet to plead innocence.

“Generally all these athletes take banned substances orally so that it get washed out early. In case of anabolic steroids, the traces remain in the body for two to four weeks and sometimes it gets washed out in two weeks. So, it is possible that an athlete’s samples taken in consecutive days can return differently,” said a sports medicine expert.

He has been provisionally suspended, pending hearing.