Doping scandal: athletics coach sacked

Agencies

New Delhi, 06 July 2011: A day after the second doping scandal rocked Indian sports, Indian athletic’s Ukranian coach Yuri Ogrodnik was sacked by the Sports Ministry on Tuesday.

 

Addressing a press conference, Sports Minister Ajay Maken said all foreign coaches attached to the tainted athletes will also be removed with immediate effect.

 

"The positive dope tests of eight athletes brought disgrace to the sporting fraternity and the entire country. So we have decided to take some strong measures against the coaches and officials so that such things doesn’t occur again in future," Maken told reporters here.

 

"We have decide to relieve the foreign coach (Ogrodnik of Ukraine) attached with these athletes with immediate effect. I will personally see to it and ensure that officials who are responsible for it (scandal) should be penalised," he said.

 

Maken also ordered a judicial probe under a retired High Court judge into the doping case and said the tainted athletes will have to face action and penalty. "A judicial inquiry under a retired High Court judge into the doping case is ordered and the athletes will themselves face action and penalty."

 

"The inquiry panel will also suggest concrete measures to ensure that such events doesn’t emerge in future," the minister added.

 

He stressed on the need to station more doctors at the National Institute of Patiala (NIS) and other camps and added that the National Anti Doping Agency will have a major role to play as far as players whereabouts are concerned.

 

"NADA will have to track the movement of drugs in and around the coaching camps and greater vigilance of the coaches and the doctors will be done," Makan said, adding that NADA dope officers will be also be changed frequently.

 

Earlier on Monday, a second doping scandal involving Indian athletes surfaced within a week. Ashwini Akkunji, winner of the 400 metres hurdles at the 2010 Asiad Games and Priyanka Pawar failed their respective dope tests on Monday.

 

Akkunji was also a part of the 4x400 meters relay team which won the gold medal in last year’s Commonwealth Games.

 

’A’ samples of both Pawar and Akkunji have tested positive for a banned steroid. In all a total of eight athletes have now failed the dope test.

 

"We are sorry to announce that two more athletes have been tested positive in the same salt as the other six athletes. We have received the communication from NADA," said Athletics Federation of India (AFI) president M L Dogra.

 

"They (Ashwini and Priyanka) were part of the team for the Asian Championships in Kobe but after their failed dope tests, they have been provisionally suspended."

 

Earlier, on Thursday doping in athletics had taken scandalous proportions with five Indian athletes, including Commonwealth and Asian Games gold medallist Sini Jose, flunked the tests conducted by the National Anti-Doping Agency.

 

Jose, along with another 400m runner Tiana Mary Thomas, long jumper Hari Krishnan, and shot putter Sonia returned positive for anabolic steroids in their ’A’ samples.

 

The samples were taken by NADA during the June 11-14 National Inter-State Athletics Meet in Bangalore.

 

Two more Indian athletes - Mandeep Kaur and Juana Murmu - were on Wednesday suspended and faced the prospect of a two-year ban after failing an out-of-competition dope test.

 

The ’B’ samples of both the athletes returned positive for anabolic steroids in the tests conducted by International Association of Athletics Federations.