Ever wonder, why India can’t produce sprint greats like Usain Bolt, Asafa Powell, or Yohan Blake? Why have we never crossed the 10s barrier in men’s 100m? Why do our women never deliver a sub-11s run? Or for that matter, why do we generally lag behind in athletics, barring a few events? The reasons can be plenty, but one of the biggest will be the absence of a solid athletics culture and lack of awareness among the athletes.
Not getting deep into the other several reasons, and focussing on the awareness part only, at a recent event at the JLN Stadium in New Delhi, competitors made a complete mockery of the show. The athletes indulged in taking performance-enhancement drugs in plenty, only to back out of the event last moment, upon realising the presence of dope control officials.
As per a report in the Indian Express, at the Delhi State Athletics Championships, only one athlete turned up for the men’s 100m final, while others just eloped the venue, or did not compete. Hilariously, a steeplechase runner kept running after the finish line, to avoid a dope test. In fact, the medal winners did not turn up for the ceremony, to avoid giving the samples. The report further suggests that the bathrooms of the venue of the competition were filled with empty packets of Recombinant Human Erythropoietin (EPO) injection, the drug for treating anemia.
While this is certainly not the first or the last time such a case about the usage of drugs in athletics has come out, but is alarming for sure. India’s future in athletics looks bleak if the drug menace is not tackled with immediate effect.
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