Wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt’s London Olympics bronze may turn into silver

2012 Games Silver medallist - deceased Besik Kudukhov of Russia - has been stripped off his medal for using banned substance.

New Delhi:

Indian wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt’s bronze medal from the London Olympics may be upgraded to silver amid reports that the silver medallist from the 2012 Games-- deceased Besik Kudukhov of Russia--has been stripped off his medal for using banned substance.

As per Russian agency flowrestling.org, the four-time world champion and two-time Olympic medallist Kudukhov, who had died in a car crash in 2013 in southern Russia, has been found positive for dope test conducted by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

As a result, Yogeshwar, who had bagged a bronze medal in men’s 60kg freestyle category in London Games, may move up from bronze to silver and join Sushil Kumar as another silver medallist from the 2012 Olympics.

However, the official confirmation will have to come from the United World Wrestling (UWW) and the International Olympic Committee.

On whether and when Yogeshwar, who had bowed out in the first round of men’s 65kg freestyle at the recently concluded Rio Olympic Games, would be handed a silver medal will be confirmed only when the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) gets it in writing from the World body (UWW).