Topic: News: Indian Lifters Test Positive Again and Again

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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Weightlifting body hopes government will bail them out

With the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) refusing it financial help, the Weightlifting Federation of India (WFI) is now pinning its hopes on the sports ministry to pay the fine imposed by the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF), and enable its participation in the Commonwealth Games at home.

WFI had approached both the sports ministry and IOA for an interest-free loan to pay off the outstanding fine of $375,000 to IWF by Aug 31 after six lifters tested positive last year. IWF had fined India $500,000.

The sports ministry had asked IOA to resolve the issue immediately, but the IOA said that it can't help WFI financially as it would be seen as 'abetment to doping'.

WFI secretary-general Sahdev Yadav hoped that the federation can still pay the fine by the deadline.

'We are still hoping that we can meet the deadline. But if we fail, what can we do, our weightlifters will not take part in the Commonwealth Games. We are still hopeful that the sports ministry will come and bail us out. We are just asking for interest- free loan,' Yadav told IANS.

A top IOA official put the onus on the sports ministry saying that it is the responsibility of the government to help WFI.

'We want the government to pay the money as an interest-free loan to the WFI. It is the obligation of the sports ministry to help the WFI,' the IOA official said on condition of anonymity.

The sports ministry has so far refused to pay the amount because it is supporting a dope-free sport through its own National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) and doesn't want to be seen in a bad light.

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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Weightlifting federation lashes out at ministry, IOA

Indian Weightlifting Federation (IWLF) secretary-general Sahdev Yadav Friday lashed out at the government and Indian Olympic Association (IOA) for being indifferent in helping them raise the $500,000 fine to the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) as a doping sanction.

The IWLF had paid $125,000 of the amount and had been pinning their hopes on the sports ministry and IOA to bail them out of the crisis. But as time for the Aug 31 deadline is running out, so are their hopes.

Both Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and the sports ministry have refused any financial help to IWLF to repay the fine.

The sports ministry had asked IOA to resolve the issue immediately, but the IOA said that it can't help the IWLF financially as it would be seen as 'abetment to doping'.

If IWFL fails to meet the deadline, India will be barred from competing in any international event including Oct 3-14 Commonwealth Games and the subsequent Asian Games in November.

Yadav wonders why they have been allotted budget for Commonwealth Games training if the players won't be able to compete at the Games.

'We have been sending letters to Sports Ministry and the IOA for help from three months but have got no reply. We have even asked them to give us a loan, which we will pay in due course but to no avail. The players are training hard and are happy with the facilities but their morale is down. They don't know whether they will be able to compete in the Games where they have been targeting 14 medals,' Yadav told IANS.

'All the sponsors have backed out thanks to the irresponsible media reporting. We somehow have collected a little over a crore (of rupees) for the fine but even that will go waste if we do not get help from IOA or government. What was the point of players working so hard?'

The sports ministry has refused to pay the amount because it is supporting a dope-free sport through its own National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) and doesn't want to be seen in a bad light.

In another reminder to the IOA Friday, the sports ministry's joint secretary Injeti Srinivas said that it is the 'primary obligation' of IOA and Commonwealth Games Organising Committee to ensure that all teams participate in the Games.

'This matter also came up for discussions during the meeting of Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF) president and chief executive and you had with the Union Sports Minister on Aug 19, 2010 in which the minister had observed that the penalty imposed was prohibitive and far beyond the capacity of the IWLF,' said Srinivas.

'It is the primary obligation of the IOA as a National Olympic Committee (NOC) and the Organising Committee of the Commonwealth Games to ensure that the Indian teams participate in all sports disciplines and all events. We request you to kindly take up the matter urgently with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) for substantial reduction of the penalty amount and re-scheduling the payment,' he added.

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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Ministry asks IOA to negotiate for reduction of lifting fine

NEW DELHI: Barely 10 days before the deadline for India to pay a hefty $3,75,000 doping fine, Sports Ministry on Friday asked Commonwealth Games organisers and IOA to impress upon International Weightlifting Federation for reduction of the penalty amount and re-scheduling of payments.

Indian Weightlifting Federation was fined $5 lakh after six lifters tested positive last year and the national body has paid $1,25,000 from its resources in two installments. It had asked Indian Olympic Association and the Ministry an interest free loan of Rs one crore each to pay the fine by August 31 deadline.

The Ministry has written to CWG OC and IOA to sort out the issue by asking International Weightlifting Federation for reduction of the "prohibitive" fine and rescheduling of the payment so that Indian lifters can take part in the CWG and Asian Games in China in November.

"The federation has paid $1,25,000 by borrowing from different sources and have expressed their inability to raise the remaining amount. Under these circumstances, it is the primary obligation of IOA as a National Olympic Committee and the Organising Committee for the Delhi CWG to ensure that the Indian teams participate in all sports disciplines and all events," said a letter written by Joint Secretary Sports Injeti Srinivas to IOA chief Suresh Kalmadi.

"Kindly take up this matter urgently with International Olympic Committee and International Weightlifting Federation for substantial reduction of penalty amount and rescheduling the payment," said the letter a copy of which was also marked to CGF chief Michael Fennell and IOC NOC Relations Director Pere Miro.

The Sports Ministry also asked the IOA to "consider appropriate measures to help the federation tide over the present crisis, especially since the present management is not guilty of dope-related offences that took place earlier for which the previous management has taken moral responsibility and resigned".

The letter said that the matter was taken up by Sports Minister MS Gill with Fennell when the latter was here for a two-day stock-taking visit of the Commonwealth Games.

"This matter also came up for discussion during the meeting of CGF President (Michael Fennell), CEO CGF (Mike Hooper) and you had with the Sports Minister on August 19 in which the minister had observed that the penalty imposed was prohibitive and far beyond the capacity of the federation," the letter said.

"Notwithstanding your assurances (to sort out the issue), we have been receiving repeated SoSs from the national federation that IOA is yet to come to their rescue which is posing a real threat to the participation of Indian weightlifting team in the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games," it said.

"We believed that the IOA will ensure that innocent athletes do not suffer due to inaction in this regard," the letter said.

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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Weightlifting body looks for loan to pay doping fine

Miffed at the indifference of the sports ministry and the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), the Indian Weightlifting Federation (IWLF) Saturday said it is being forced to look for financial assistance from other sources to pay off the hefty fine the international federation has imposed for doping sanctions.

The IWLF took this stand a day after the sports ministry's joint secretary Injeti Srinivas again reminded the IOA and Commonwealth Games Organising Committee (CGOC) of their 'primary obligation' to ensure that all teams participate in the Games.

The IWLF has paid $125,000 and if the remaining amount of $375,000 is not paid by Aug 31, the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) will ban India from competing in international competitions.

Indian weightlifters will thus not be able to compete in the Commonwealth Games here Oct 3-14. The IWF fined IWLF $500,000 after six Indian weightlifters tested positive in dope tests last year.

IWLF secretary general Sahdev Yadav told IANS that the federation is forced to look for outside help.

'Time is running out for us. We have just 10 days in hand and have to arrange for $375,000 to ensure that our wrestlers are not banned. We have been demanding interest-free loans from both the sports ministry and the IOA,' he said.

'Now we are looking for loan from other agencies to pay this money. I can't reveal the details as we are still negotiating with them, and hopefully we can pay the fine,' Yadav added.

Both the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and the sports ministry have refused any financial help to the IWLF to pay the fine.

The sports ministry has refused to pay the amount because it is supporting a dope-free sport through its own National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) and doesn't want to be seen in a bad light. The IOA says that it cannot help the IWLF financially as it would be seen as 'abetment to doping'.

A top official in sports ministry told IANS that the government wants the issue to be solved soon.

'We want the deadlock to end. We are paying so much for the training of the athletes and we don't want them to miss out on the Commonwealth Games. We want to sit down with the IOA and the IWLF and solve this issue soon,' the official said.

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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Sports ministry to CGOC: Give interest-free loan to weightlifting body

The sports ministry and the Commonwealth Games Organising Committee (CGOC) seems to be in a deadlock over the issue of bailing out the Indian Weightlifting Federation (IWLF) by paying off their outstanding fine worth $375,000 to the international federation.

Sports ministry's joint secretary Injeti Srinivas in a letter to CGOC chief executive Jarnail Singh directed the organising committee to give interest free loan of $375,000 (Rs.1.75 crore) to IWLF to enable it to meet its obligation towards payment of penalty to the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF).

The IWLF was fined $500,000 by the IWF after six Indian weightlifters tested positive in dope tests last year. The IWLF had paid $125,000 and if the remaining amount of $375,000 is not paid by Aug 31, the IWF will ban India from competing in international competitions including the Commonwealth Games here Oct 3-14.

The IWLF had requested both the government and the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) to give interest-free loan so that they can pay off the fine and ensure the participation of the weightlifting team in the Commonwealth Games.

Both sports ministry and the IOA have been putting the ball in each other's court refusing to bail out IWLF.

Srinivas in his letter to CGOC said that the sports minister's top priority was to safe guard the interest of Indian weightlifters and to ensure their participation in Games.

'The sports ministry directs the organising committee to release Rs.1.75 crore to the IWLF as interest-free loan with a moratorium of one year. The release shall be made under the Joint Marketing Agreement. The repayment of the loan to the IOA may be separately determined by the IOA and the IWLF in due course. Since the deadline for the submission of entries for the Commonwealth Games fast approaching, the loan may be disbursed immediately pending all formalities,' Srinivas wrote in his letter.

Singh said that the CGOC has received the letter from the sports ministry.

'We'll need a couple of days time to discuss the matter,' he said.

The sports ministry has refused to pay the amount because it is supporting a dope-free sport through its own National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) and doesn't want to be seen in a bad light. The IOA says that it cannot help the IWLF financially as it would be seen as 'abetment to doping'.

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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Govt. directs OC to pay fine

In an unprecedented move, the Union Sports Ministry has directed the Organising Committee (OC), Commonwealth Games, to provide an interest-free loan of Rs 1.75 crore to the Indian Weightlifting Federation (IWLF) so that the latter can pay off the fine imposed by the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) enabling the Indian team's participation in the Games.

The Government has been anxious to settle the issue of fine during the past one month, repeatedly requesting the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) to help the federation or to get the fine reduced through the IWF or even the intervention of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) or the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF).

The IOA having thrown its hands up recently, after having initially entertained thoughts of extending a loan, on the argument that it would be unethical and unacceptable to the IOC since it would amount to abetting doping, a way out had been looking difficult.

Rich haul expected

The ministry's move in directing the OC to pay out of its funds in order to meet the disciplinary sanction on an individual federation has come about because of the large number of medals that the Indian weightlifters are supposed to win at the Games.

“Sports Minister's top priority was to safeguard the interest of Indian weightlifters and to ensure they get participation in CWG and others international competitions,” the ministry explained its position on Tuesday.

The Sports Minister, M.S. Gill, is on record that he did not want any medal “won in disgrace”. He had said last year: “I want medals won with honour.”

It is true that since six weightlifters tested positive in September last year, forcing the IWF to impose a fine of $5,00,000 on the IWLF (a balance of $3,75,000 is yet to be paid.), no Indian weightlifter has been reported for an anti-doping rule violation.

Yet, experts in the anti-doping field are uneasy that all of a sudden the sport in India has become dope-free or at least the tests are turning out to be negative.

The OC, at the mercy of the Government for finances has a sanctioned budget of Rs. 1620 crores for the conduct of the Games. An additional Rs 720 crore had been requested apart from Rs. 687 crore sanctioned by the Government for ‘outlays' that comprise temporary fittings, tents, air conditioners etc.

Since the Government has given the OC an interest-free loan for the conduct of the Games, it is easy for the ministry to “direct” the OC to pay up for the benefit of the weightlifters.

It was clear that the Government did not want to make a direct payment related to a doping fine since India is a signatory to the World Anti Doping Code and the UNESCO Convention against doping in sport.

Yet, questions could emerge as to how a particular federation's fine is being paid by the OC, especially after such a request was rejected by the IOA. An OC official, requesting anonymity, said that the OC would pay.

Controversies

Indian weightlifting had been mired in doping controversies since two of its lifters came back from the Manchester Commonwealth Games in 2002, testing positive. Two more tested positive in the Athens Olympics, apart from the regular quota of ‘positive' tests in domestic testing and other international competitions.

At the last Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in 2006, two more male lifters tested positive, apart from two woman lifters in the run-up to the Games. India was suspended by the IWF in 2004 and 2006 for a year each.

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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Indian weightlifters set to return to competition

Indian weightlifters are set to return to the international fold as the money needed to pay a fine to the International Weightlifting Federation has been arranged.
Officials feared India would miss out on a host of Commonwealth Games medals if a fine of $500,000 was not paid by the deadline of Aug. 31.

But the national body is now ready to pay the remaining $375,000 it owes after receiving a cheque from the organizing committee of the Commonwealth Games on a direction from the sports ministry.

Indian Weightlifting Federation chief Birendra Prasad Baishya confirmed the cheque had been received and promised that "Indian weightlifters will win a number of medals at the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games this year."

India is expecting to win more than a dozen medals in weightlifting competitions during the Commonwealth Games in October.

[Chris Ⓐ LeRoux]

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Borrowed cash clears Indian weightlifters

India's weightlifters will be able to take part in the Delhi Commonwealth Games after their federation borrowed money from Games organisers to cover an unpaid fine, allowing them to avoid an international ban.

After six lifters failed drugs tests last year, the Indian Weightlifting Federation was fined $500,000 by the international body, which threatened to ban the federation if the amount was not cleared in full by the end of this month.

The IWF paid $125,000 from its pocket before asking the sports ministry and the Indian Olympic Association to make up the shortfall.

The sports ministry, in turn, told the Games organising committee to give the IWF an interest-free loan of $375,000 to enable the Indian lifters to compete in the October 3-14 Games.

"I have received the cheque today and we would pay the remaining fine at the earliest," IWF secretary Sahdev Yadav told Reuters on Thursday.

"It's a huge relief and clears the decks for our lifters' participation in the Games. We are expecting 13-14 medals from them and hope they would not let us down."