Doping: Javelin thrower DP Manu banned for four years

Javelin thrower DP Manu has been banned for four years by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) after testing positive for prohibited substance methyltestosterone.

The 25-year-old Manu, who won a silver medal at the 2023 Asian Championships, was tested during the Indian Grand Prix 1 in Bengaluru in April 2024 where he won the competition with a throw of 81.91m.

NADA found traces of the anabolic-androgenic steroid in his sample.

Manu, coached by former Commonwealth Games medallist Kashinath Naik, competed in two more events after Bengaluru. While he could not reach the qualifying mark of 85.50m for Paris Olympics, he would have made the cut on the basis of his world ranking.

However, he was provisionally suspended by NADA before the National Inter-State Athletics Championships in Panchkula

As the per latest list of sanctioned athletes, released by the Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel of NADA, the final decision in Manu’s case was announced on March 3.

His ban will begin retrospectively from June 24, 2024.