Junior National Coach Provisionally Suspended by NADA for Complicity in Doping

The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) has provisionally suspended junior national athletics coach and Dhronacharya awardee, Ramesh Nagapuri, for alleged complicity involving an anti-doping rule violation.

Two other coaches, Rakesh (Athletics) and Karamveer Singh (Judo/Athletics), have also been named in NADA’s list of provisionally suspended athletes.

Nagapuri’s suspension stems from a violation of Article 2.9 of the National Anti-Doping Rules, which pertains to “assisting, encouraging, aiding, abetting, conspiring, covering up or any other type of intentional complicity or attempted complicity” involving an anti-doping rule violation, attempted anti-doping rule violation or violation of the ban on participation during ineligibility or provisional suspension under Article 10.14.1 by another person.

According to NADA, Nagapuri allegedly assisted athletes in evading sample collection by NADA officials during a testing visit to the Sports Authority of India (SAI) centre in Hyderabad, where the athletes were training.

Under Article 10.3.4, violations involving complicity can result in a period of ineligibility ranging from a minimum of two years to a lifetime ban, depending on the severity of the offence.

Cases involving doping charges against coaches remain relatively rare in India. However, this is not unprecedented. In 2022, Mumbai-based athletics coach Mickey Menezes received a ban for administering a prohibited substance to an athlete. More recently, Judo coach Naresh Arya was banned for obstructing NADA officials and reportedly assaulting one during a sample collection attempt.