NADA provisionally suspends eight athletes over positive doping tests

The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) on September 16, 2026 provisionally suspended eight athletes for testing positive for banned substances. The agency named the athletes and disclosed the substances that triggered the provisional suspensions.

Ashu and Kaushal Kumar were among those provisionally suspended after testing positive for mephentermine. Jujhar Singh tested positive for EPO, and para-athlete Bhagat Singh returned adverse findings for mephentermine and morphine.

Baljit Kaur tested positive for metenolone and oxandrolone. Nabeel Sahi’s adverse findings included mephentermine and 19-norandrosterone. Ravi tested positive for mephentermine, meldonium and 19-norandrosterone.

National inter-State bronze medallist in 200m Prakruthi Rupa Rao was provisionally suspended after testing positive for stanozolol and drostanolone. The provisional suspensions were announced together in the NADA notice published on September 16, 2026.

A NADA disciplinary panel has suspended coach Rakesh Kumar for life. The panel’s lifetime suspension of Rakesh Kumar was listed separately from the provisional athlete suspensions.

Several other individuals received fixed-term suspensions: Sanjana Singh (five years), Sachin Poswal (four years), Seema Punia (two years), Nitesh Poonia (two years), Anjali Kumari (six years) and Shashikesh Kumar (three years). These sanctions were reported alongside the provisional suspensions.

International archer Sukhmani Babrekar was suspended for 18 months. The case list and sanction lengths were published in the same report.

The article was published on September 16, 2026 at 10:34 pm IST.